As a former Miss France, Pascale is no stranger to the world of fashion. Unabashedly emotional, she challenges gender stereotypes by using clothes as a symbol of strength and sexuality. She explains: “Fashion is one of the most important means of communication. It is a way of transcending the difficulty of being part of a sex that is both venerated and scorned, honoured and humiliated. We are no longer confined by an ideal standard of femininity or beauty, but can instead celebrate our true selves through what we wear.” The artist, who lives in Pau in south-western France, explores the complexities of life as a 21st century woman in her series of oil paintings. Displayed at our 2017 exhibition, Pascale’s figurative artworks express a burning passion for self-expression through the use of colour and texture. Her studio walls are adorned with drawings, photographs and images from magazines, which she fuses to create figures that are both personal and universal. Painting on canvas with extra-fine oil, she blocks in her sketch before allowing the piece to choose its own direction. Fusing themes of feminism with razor-sharp observation, Pascale’s hyperrealistic pieces present fashion as an art of conquest. Clothing is not an inanimate object, but a multi- layered symbol that can reveal much about us. Sunglasses become a way to shield our secrets from others, while shoes are an indicator of status, wealth and even libido. She adds: “Like painting, sculpture or dance, clothes are a way of revealing a vision. Shoes are an intensely sexual symbol, whether it’s the erotic nature of the foot or the eyes of a man slowly sliding along an ankle before continuing their ascent. When a woman wears heels, her body changes: her figure sways, her head is upright and her shoulders are back. It’s so sexy.
“My work is not a question of delivering a beautiful body bound by societal rules, but a fashion world that is a way of truly expressing oneself.”
Pascale’s new collection will be released in autumn 2018.
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