The 4th edition of Enter Art Fair took place over this past weekend in the cultural hot spot of Tunnelfabrikken, Copenhagen. The 4 day event, the only international art fair in Scandinavia, has built up a great reputation since its inauguration back in 2019 and is now well known for being as vibrant and forward-looking as the city it takes place in.

Galleri Benoni have shown some of Paco Pomet’s best work over the past 3 years of the fair, and this summer was no exception with 4 stunning new paintings on display at their popular booth.

‘The Crossing’ (all works 2022), is a gorgeous contemporary take on the story of Charon, the ferryman from Greek mythology who transported the souls of the deceased from the land of the living into the underworld for judgement. Much like Joachim Patinir’s famous depiction of the same scene in ‘Landscape with Charon Crossing the Styx’, the boat is placed at the midway point between heaven and hell, with the doomed passenger looking on in dread towards the latter. In a modern twist, however, the destinations in Pomet’s adaptation are represented by glowing, neon texts that light up the surrounding landscape in spectacular fashion.

In ‘Zen’, an explorer calls out into a deep valley absent of any other living being, building or machine. The lone figure appears to be at one with nature, finally away from the noise and drama of modern life (not a phone in sight!) and the painting oozes the feeling of calmness and tranquility.

The personification of trees is a theme that Pomet has visited throughout his career, and ‘A love story’ is a beautiful example of this series of works. The artist manages to portray human form, movement and emotion within 2 palm trees that lovingly chase after one another on a beach. The clever addition of cartoon-like dust clouds really tops off this playful piece perfectly.

The detached summit of the mountain in the magnificent ‘Piece Of My Heart’ reveals an alarming orange interior, further pronounced against the contrasting white snow. Is this a heartbreaking story of how global warming continues to wreak havoc on the planet, or is it in fact an ode to the beauty of the natural landscape from an artist who is surrounded by breathtaking scenery in his home town of Granada? As is often the case with Pomet’s work, the meaning is not univocal, and it is left for the viewer to decide. Either way, the painting is certainly sobering in a summer where heatwaves and drought have meant that many of Europe’s mountain ranges have been closed to hikers for fear of falling rocks.

Click on the images below for a closer look at each of the paintings

All in all the 4 Pomet paintings at the fair, each very different to the next, hit the nail on the head in both concept and execution. It is worth noting that they were created during a period in which the artist relocated to a new studio having worked out of his previous space for some 20 years. If these works are anything to go by there are going to be some seriously good pieces coming out of Granada for the foreseeable!

Credit is also due to the exceptional curation and installation from Benoni, who managed to showcase the depth of Pomet’s work brilliantly. The contrast between each of the works was spectacular - the despair of the deceased facing their eternal fate placed next to the meditative state of solitude in nature. The carefree feeling of young love placed next to the seriousness of climate change. This is the range of emotions that keeps us coming back for more.

Elsewhere at the fair, Atelier Clot’s booth featured 3 fantastic prints from Pomet, including a first showing of ‘Ellos’ - a lithograph made in their legendary Paris workshop at the beginning of July. Enter was a fitting place to debut this print, as the original painting of this work was a big hit with visitors at the 2nd edition of the event back in the summer of 2020.

2022 has certainly been a busy one for Pomet so far, having kicked off the year with a highly successful solo show at My Names Lolita Art, followed up with stellar contributions at group exhibitions in Bilbao, Madrid, Beijing and Dubai. It is safe to say that Copenhagen will also be regarded as a highlight in a great year to date for fans of the artist.

Stay tuned as there is still a lot left to come in the remaining quarter!

- House of Pomet