Kate Lewis – Solo show

Sobering Galerie is pleased to present the Kate Lewis first solo show in its Parisian space, after having exhibited her work in Los Angeles, Luxembourg, San Francisco and Seattle.

Kate Lewis’ work is characterized by luminous and timeless interiors that reflect a sophisticated interplay of space, light, and pattern. Her compositions reveal an affinity for modern American artists such as Wayne Thiebaud, Loïs Dodd, and Milton Avery, particularly in her treatment of space and color. The flattened perspective and bidimensionality in her interiors echo Thiebaud’s graphic precision, while her delicate interplay of light and shadow recalls Dodd’s poetic realism. The harmonious balance of simplified forms and expressive colors create a sensible composition that takes precedence over strict realism. David Hockney also has a significant place in Kate Lewis practice, with the bold use of color they both share, as long as the inventive spatial constructions and lifelong exploration of interior and exterior scenes.

The decorative elements within some of her compositions recall the meticulous attention to interior design found in the British Bloomsbury group’s home, the Charleston farmhouse in Sussex, where hand-painted furniture, ornamental patterns, and grand libraries created an immersive artistic atmosphere. Her artistic vision extends further, embracing the legacy of early 20th-century French masters like Henri Matisse, Félix Vallotton, and Édouard Vuillard. The rich, decorative motifs adorning her interiors bring to mind Matisse’s opulent patterns and vibrant arabesques, reminiscent of his Interior with Aubergines (1911, Grenoble Museum). Through open windows or doorways—a frequent motif in her paintings—Lewis invites the viewer to imagine a world beyond the interior, where nature and domesticity coexist in visual harmony. These glimpses often frame lush gardens or stylized greenery, channeling Vallotton’s distinctive contours and Vuillard’s sense of intimacy and enclosure.

By weaving together these diverse influences, Kate Lewis crafts interiors that are both deeply personal and universally evocative—spaces where history, art, and emotion converge in a celebration of color, pattern, and atmosphere.