“C’est excellent” was the first thing I heard someone say when I arrived at the opening for Remy Proisy’s solo show “Petite Pagaille” (or “lovely little mess”) through November 28 at Utopia gallery in Kingston. Several of Proisy’s friends were in attendance, and their lively conversation perfumed the air with a waft of perfect French charm. The smiling artist chatted excitedly as Utopia founder Lucia Cote warmly welcomed an upbeat crowd on a cozy autumn evening.
Working with velvet as his primary muse, Proisy’s oeuvre is a celebration of this gentle material and its enchanting tendencies. Featuring 21 artworks all made in cross-cut velvet (and with raw wood frames crafted by the artist), “Petite Pagaille” is pure delight. Walking around the room, these full-blooded monochrome works change in hue and fade slightly out of view before reappearing as if magic. Proisy explores his personal poetry through recurring themes including figures, marionettes, still life scenes, and men’s clothing, all brought to life with an alluring velveteen sheen.
Proisy captures the elegance of living as equally simple and sensual, and works such as Nature Morte à L’Aubergine, Cocktail, Tomate et Parmesan (2026) features an arrangement of familiar objects (an eggplant, a cocktail, a tomato, and cheese) but Proisy has a way of making these common things more luxurious in their velvety incarnations. His work also embodies a certain whimsy, and Petite Pied (2026) and Tissue (2026) are just that: a “little foot” and white tissues in a heap.
It was a joy to meander from one work to the next, as Proisy’s authentic narrative unfolds into a “lovely little mess” of graceful and romantic tableaus. Fleurs (2026), for example, features a bouquet of ravishing wildflowers in a shade of olive green, while the brown-toned Couteaux (2026) includes six kitchen knives arranged in a row against a wall. The petite show-within-the show are the works devoted to the female nude. Here Proisy engages with the timeless beauty of the feminine form in works such as the sultry crimson colored Nu (2026), featuring a woman that retreats into her fabric paradise, and Statue (2026), a four-part work featuring a fragmented woman in deep purple.
As I sauntered around, I overheard Proisy discussing his creative process: first he does the drawing, then he cuts the material. I eventually introduced myself and asked him to point out one work and share some thoughts about it. He walked us over to Cravates (2026), a piece that includes five neckties that hang off the back, giving the work a sculptural effect. “I never wear a tie,” he explained and then went on to say in a silly voice, “but I buy so many ties.” He mentioned something about the pressures of having to choose a tie before we were interrupted by other cheerful fans seeking his attention.
At the back of the gallery stood a mini bar featuring a sophisticated cocktail menu with artisan spirits inspired by the artist, including “Floral Spritz” and “Velvet Morning.” As the taste of elderberry liqueur mixed with burgundy and bubbly hit my lips, a Parisian-toned oh la la swept over my soul as the room smoldered with an intimate Proisy-ian glow. From prehistoric cave paintings to modern avant-garde movements with heavyweight painters such as Courbet, Manet, Monet, Degas, Cezanne, and Matisse leading the charge, the French have shaped our understanding of art and aesthetics for centuries. Proisy, too, has furthered our admiration of velvet as a cherished artistic medium by way of a “lovely little mess” that is as tidy and sweet as could be.
“Petite Pagaille” is on view through November 28 at Utopia gallery in Kingston.
