The Ghosts Of Pejac

Silhouettes and Stories from Barcelona

With pencil or chalk drawings as favorite methods to tell relatable narratives, Pejac creates poignant images that look like memories set in a dreamscape. While the accuracy of his works was what first got my attention, it was the ingenious way he employed these techniques that won me over. The Barcelona-based artist produces a versatile range of work, from drawings and paintings, to sculptures and major public interventions. He and I have met on a few occasions, but it wasn't until this conversation after opening his solo show in Venice that I got a better understanding of his work and relationship with the world, as well as a chance to look inside his beautifully sensible mind.

Sasha Bogojev: What attracts you to silhouettes? They are a consistent element in your public works.

Pejac: I think that, with silhouettes, you can connect with yourself in a very easy, fast and honest way. And from there, you connect with other people from yours and other cultures. I find them to be a universal way to express what I could be saying in a more conceptual way. The same thing can be said in thousands of ways, and I choose them because they’re fast and easy.

You've been doing fewer public interventions lately. Is there any particular reason?

The last three years, I've been working a lot out of my studio and out of the country. I've been traveling, meeting people from different countries, which was really great, but I felt that I needed some time to recharge my battery. To travel was amazing, but when you do it a lot, it becomes a problem.

I hear the same thing from artists who travel frequently, that you can get artistically stuck as you have fewer opportunities to try out new things in your studio.