Open and Closed Doors, 2021. Purdy Hicks
Hovering between dream state and reality is the ethereal world of Belgian artist Pierre Bergian. As a child growing up in Bruges and Ghent, Bergian was a curious sort. Intrigued by the old abandoned buildings he encountered along the waterways of the Low Country, he developed a fascination with interior spaces and architecture that would influence the course of his life.
Hôtel de Gesvres à Paris, 2022. Purdy Hicks
Paravent et Mirroir, 2022. Purdy Hicks
Roman Capriccio, 2022. Purdy Hicks
The Cube, 2022. Purdy Hicks
Trained in art history and archeology, Bergian became a writer, devotee of design, collector, and artist. However, it was the memory of those decaying rooms from his childhood, bathed in mystery and natural light, that would become his muse and the driving force behind his work.
Blue Room, 2022. Octavia Gallery
L’Enfilade, 2021. Octavia Gallery
Many of Bergian’s paintings depict quiet rooms, devoid of furnishings, allowing abstract pictures and architecture to sing.
White Cube, 2018. Gerald Bland
Orage, Storm, 2018. Gerald Bland
Empty Room, 2020
The Orange Painting, 2022
Other spaces are rendered with exquisite exactitude. Their owners are known to most of us by single names: Givenchy, Lagerfeld, Castaing, Duquette. Luminary icons of the design world are all within Bergian’s realm.
Hubert De Givenchy Collectionneur Paris, Christies. Hôtel d’Orrouer, 2021.
Grand Salon of Karl Lagerfeld, 51 Rue de l’Université, Paris, 2020. Purdy Hicks
Living Room of Tony Duquette, 2022. Purdy Hicks
Bibliothèque of Madeleine Castaing, Lèves, France, 2020. Eerdmans
Whether a serene, imaginary chamber, adorned with a single painting, the opulent lair of one of the world’s greatest designers, or a vacant street lined with soulful buildings, a Bergian work is distinctive if not supernatural. It’s as if we are voyeurs, catching a glimpse of a private, ephemeral world with Pierre as our guide.
Citta Ideale, 2022. Octavia Gallery
Pierre Bergian studied at the University of Ghent and has published writings on design and architecture. He has had solo exhibitions at galleries around the world including Purdy Hicks, Octavia, Eerdmans, and Gerald Bland. Bergian’s work is included in the permanent collection of The British Museum, London. His next exhibition will be at the Octavia Gallery, New Orleans, February 2023.
PRODUCED BY LESLIE NEWSOM RASCOE, MILIEU DESIGN DIRECTOR
