Nicolas Roggy

Nicolas Roggy (b. 1980 Le Blanc, France) lives and works in Paris, France. He studied at Collège Marcel Duchamp (1999) and Eć ole Régionale des Beaux-Arts de Nantes (2003-2005). His work is deeply influenced by the Eighties, a period of quickly growing global capitalism, political upheaval, notable wealth differences, global mass media and distinctive music and fashion, including electronic pop music and hip hop.

Roggy’s abstract work focuses on the painting process by superposing successive layers, then removing some parts by scratching to better reveal additions of visual elements, including stencil and silkscreen patterns. His abstract paintings, visually punctuated by music and its vibrations, come out from this spontaneous process. His paintings are highly constructed to the point of absurdity. But as complex as they are, their workings are finely tuned for one simple purpose. One tells the passing of time, and the other unveils the image as a machine. Nevertheless, Roggy’s art is neither formulaic nor does it follow a certain routine. His paintings function as images. Particularly when seen from afar, they emerge like hard facts. From a closer view, the image breaks down with a puzzling effect into a dysfunctional plastic category.

Roggy was awarded with Jean-Francois Prat Prize, in Paris, France (2018).