I am thrilled to be having a solo exhibition in Paris, at Galerie Lefebvre et Fils. This will be my first solo exhibition with the gallery and in Europe at large. I will be showing new ceramic sculptures made during a month long residency in Versailles, France. Most of the sculptures are made with porcelain, including a full figure standing 64″ tall. All the information below.

DEREK WEISBERG
YOUR SOUL IS A CHOSEN
LANDSCAPE
November 21, 2019 – January 11, 2020
Opening Thursday 21st November from 6 to 8pm

“I have spent the last several weeks living and working a mere 800m from one of the greatest
architectural and cultural complexes in history. Vibrations from the “Le Grand Siècle” pulsate
down the avenue, into my studio. It is impossible to escape the eclipse of the Sun King’s kiss.
His radiation moves beyond the guided mirrored halls, through the acres of pristinely manicured
gardens with its monumental outdoor sculptures, and past the massive golden entry gates. I am
an American in France, with an outsiders perspective. The incredible grandeur and cultural
accomplishment is fascinating, even admirable; but as an outsider it is hard to not compare the
reign of Louis the XIV, his heirs, and their wealthy nobility to the current world, especially the
USA with its billionaire class.
How does one make figurative sculpture with the baggage of history and the incredibly rich
artistic accomplishments found at Versailles, and in France? In addition, how does one do this
with the heavy comparison to the economic/ social landscape of todays world? If anything it has
fortified my interest in the portrayal of humanity and the human condition. It is a reminder of
what it means to be a human with all our flaws and dysfunctions, living life with the
acknowledgement and awareness of our own finitude. It has reinforced my thinking about “the
people,” the non ruling class, the underdogs, and the actual power we hold.
With the individual in mind, inspiration for this show was not only drawn from the Bourbon
dynasty but also from significant French individuals: thinkers and artists such as David, Rodin,
Delacroix, Géricault, Bonnard, Baudelaire, Rimbaud, and Verlaine. In fact the title of the show
comes from the opening line of a Verlaine poem, titled Claire de Lune. This poem also includes
the line: “masque and bergamasque” which is the title of the 200 page catalogue produced by
Laurent de Verneuil which accompanies the exhibition. I have chosen French history, the current state of the world and my own personal landscape to provided the frame for this exhibition.”
Derek Weisberg, October 2019

Derek Weisberg
Born in 1983, lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
Derek Weisberg studied at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, CA where he
received a BFA in 2005. Gallery Lefebvre et Fils is pleased to be presenting Weisberg’s first solo
show in Europe. Weisberg has shown extensively throughout the United States and is a recent
alumni of the Sharpe Walentas Studio program, a highly prestigious residency program in NY.
He has created most of the large scale figurative sculptures in porcelain. His mastery and
control of the material has evolved into a more collaborative way of working with clay; allowing
the material to express its own voice and vocabulary. This approach is something akin to the
Zen expression of Wabi Sabi; a connection to materiality and spiritual principals through the
acceptance of reality, chance, imperfection.

Galerie Lefebvre & Fils
24, rue du bac – 75007 Paris
www.lefebvreetfils.fr