Pascal Grandmaison

Since the late 1990s, Pascal Grandmaison has carved out a reputation as one of the most meticulous and innovative artists of his generation. His work suggests a new approach, not only to photography and video, but also to the way his pieces are exhibited. Often based on the portrait genre, Grandmaison’s art is distinctive for its formal strategies such as the close-up and white background. In the introduction, director Marc Mayer writes, “In his world we are very far from the materialistic concerns of pop art. The faces, hair and clothes of Grandmaison’s sitters are so much of our time that our ephemeral culture seems more present here than in most other recent art that strains so hard to achieve timelessness.” This first monograph documents five photographic series and three films, many never previously shown. Pierre Landry is curator at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. Reid Shier is director of Presentation House Gallery, Vancouver.