hélène fauquet blurs photography and sculpture with ornamental shells in paris

HÉLÈNE FAUQUET PRESENTS VIVRESSE AT LAFAYETTE ANTICIPATIONS

French artist Hélène Fauquet explores the boundaries between photography, sculpture, and ornament in Vivresse, her new exhibition at Lafayette Anticipations in Paris. Opened on October 21, 2026, and occupying the foundation’s top floor, the presentation marks her first institutional exhibition in France. Through sculptural shells, elaborate frames, and images that seem to dissolve into their surroundings, Fauquet questions how objects and photographs can change meaning depending on how they are displayed, concealed, or transformed.

The exhibition takes its title from a combination of the French words vie (life) and ivresse (intoxication), suggesting a state where vitality and desire merge. This idea unfolds through works that move between natural forms and artificial decoration, creating unexpected connections between organic structures, domestic objects, and photographic imagery. Rather than treating ornament as something superficial, Fauquet uses it to reconsider the relationship between an object and its representation, drawing on a visual language that borders on Surrealism.

SHELL SCULPTURES TRANSFORM PHOTOGRAPHY INTO ORNAMENT

At the center of Vivresse are sculptures that incorporate the forms of seashells into photographic compositions. Fauquet develops these works by partially obscuring photographs with three-dimensional shell forms, allowing the sculptural elements to interrupt and reshape the original images. The photographs are no longer independent surfaces to be viewed from a distance, but components of objects that occupy a space between image, sculpture, and decorative artifact.

Their elaborate frames are equally important to the compositions. Drawing on the visual language of ornamental niches and decorative objects, they extend beyond their conventional role as supports for photographs. The resulting works recall the excesses of Rococo decoration while complicating the distinction between natural and manufactured forms. As art writer Millie Dow observes in her accompanying text, Fauquet’s approach reverses the traditional transformation of nature into ornament, presenting natural objects through an increasingly decorative vocabulary.

BUBBLES AND REFLECTIONS EXPLORE THE MOVEMENT OF IMAGES

Another recurring element in Fauquet’s practice is the bubble, a motif she has developed since 2023. Drawing inspiration from advertising, scientific photography, and everyday decorative objects, the artist approaches bubbles as unstable forms that exist between transparency and reflection. Their surfaces constantly change depending on the surrounding environment, while their apparent volume and presence suggest something organic and temporary. The motif extends Fauquet’s investigation into the movement of images and the ways in which visual information is perceived, stored, and transformed.

These ideas build on earlier works involving reflective glass objects and found photographic imagery. In Phenomena, presented at Kunsthaus Glarus in Switzerland in 2023, Fauquet assembled images from different sources, including scientific photographs and found objects, within decorative frames and display arrangements. Born in Saint-Saulve, France, in 1989, and now based in Paris, the artist continues to investigate how images gain new meanings through their physical presentation. Vivresse remains on view at Lafayette Anticipations until January 3, 2027, with free admission.

project info:

name: Vivresse
artist: Hélène Fauquet 
location: Fondation Galeries Lafayette Paris | @lafayetteanticipations
dates: October 21, 2026 – January 3, 2027

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