With his new exhibition, A singular epic, painter Gaétan Vaguelsy continues his tribute to the close circle of friends who have become the recurring heroes of his work.

Lucas, Iouri, Ashley, and Ulrich are no longer simply friends; under the artist’s brush, they emerge as the protagonists of a contemporary pictorial epic in which everyday life constantly brushes against the sacred.

Vaguelsy builds a bridge between classical iconography and the visual codes of youth, adorning his subjects with the attributes of grand history painting and religious devotion. Here, the tradition of history painting is propelled into the realm of contemporary pop culture.

Comprising twelve works of remarkable coherence, A Singular Epic invites viewers to rediscover the power of friendship through the lens of a reinvented classicism, where every wrinkle, every scar, and every gaze becomes an entry point into history.

The quality of a painter ultimately lies in the way they tell a story. Here, technical mastery, the sensuality of paint, and an offbeat sense of humor come together to create a body of work that is both powerful and deeply distinctive.

Men with Apricots depicts three friends against the backdrop of a twilight sky, as though they had stepped out of a painting by Seurat. At first glance, the scene appears ordinary, almost summery. Yet every square inch of the canvas is imbued with symbolism and allusions to the history of art. One of the three companions wears a contemporary shirt entirely patterned with cherubs borrowed directly from a painting by Raphael, fusing urban fashion with the visual language of the High Renaissance. Another casually dips his hand into a bowl overflowing with ripe apricots, a traditional symbol of carnal desire and the fleeting nature of earthly pleasures.

At their feet, a skull surmounted by a military helmet serves as a memento mori, recalling the Renaissance allegories of human vanity and the futility of war in the face of time. Gaétan Vaguelsy's technical virtuosity is equally evident in his treatment of light. Across the figures' skin, shimmering reflections of foliage appear to dance with extraordinary delicacy. Yet, in a visual irony characteristic of his work, the tree against which one of the young men leans—his pose evoking the martyrdom of Saint Sebastian—is completely devoid of leaves. This poetic, almost surreal disjunction reveals the artist's mastery of pictorial storytelling and his delight in inviting viewers to decipher the codes of his visual language.

In the portrait of Ulrich, depicted holding a packet of Fondenti sweets in a posture of near abandonment, the young man offers himself to the viewer's gaze. Our attention is immediately drawn to a striking detail: a slight yet unmistakable wound across his torso. Subtle in both its placement and execution, the mark inevitably recalls the wound in Christ's side. Beneath his elbow, a sharp stone appears to pierce his flesh.

Here, the profane merges with the sacred, transforming an afternoon nap into a contemporary Pietà imbued with quiet melancholy. Vaguelsy does not simply paint his friends—he canonizes them. He elevates their doubts, their bodies, and their bonds of friendship into the realm of a contemporary mythology.

Further into the exhibition, the viewer is captivated by Ashley's equestrian portrait. Seated proudly atop her mount, in the tradition of the equestrian portraits of the kings of France and the Napoleonic Empire, the young woman assumes the bearing of an Amazon, embodying both nobility and defiance. Vaguelsy pursues his historical references with meticulous precision, adorning the horse with a richly ornamented shabraque—the distinctive saddlecloth associated with Napoleonic cavalry.

Completing the atmosphere of this fantastical and dramatic ride, the background reveals a medieval castle engulfed in flames, worthy of the grand Romantic history paintings of the nineteenth century. The striking contrast between Ashley's unmistakably contemporary presence and this theatrical historical setting heightens the painting's visual and emotional impact.