Sacha Cambier de Montravel, Il a neigé dans nos coeurs (detail), 2025
Galerie Nathalie Obadia is pleased to present Guilty Pleasures: curated by Pierre El Khoury, a group exhibition that brings together young contemporary artists, including Sacha Cambier de Montravel, Daniel Fleur, Laslo Familari Roy, Léo Kpodzro, Renske Linders, Clément Poplineau and Alexander Skats.
The works of these seven artists engage in a dialogue around a common subject: that of guilty pleasures, those that stimulate a subtle tension between enjoyment and guilt. Their complexity stems from a connection between the intimate and the collective: personal tastes collide with social norms, and guilty pleasures evolve as they change. In a world marked by globalization and new technologies, they reinvent themselves, prompting us to ponder their new forms, their transgressions.
Fine watches, luxury leather goods, sparkling diamonds, velvet sofas and exquisite manicures are deployed across the gallery. Here, the works flirt with kitsch, which, through its deliberate excesses and artifices, invades the space like a mirror of our society, saturated with superficialities. At a time when digital culture permeates our daily lives, new forms of consumerism emerge, often ostentatious, and the subjects of the paintings reveal this evolution. The proliferation of carefully filtered images on social media has fueled new desires - irrational ones - like the quest for eternal youth, sometimes at the cost of excessive reliance on cosmetic surgery.
In this constellation of works, arranged throughout the gallery, bodies indulge, like Bacchus, slumped on silky fabrics as he awaits the bacchanals¹; feminine curves melt into the flowers and the dunes, while a hand grips a silk sheet, manifesting pleasure in action. The representation of the body, whether it is nude or draped in a light cloth, has always reflected the values and aspirations specific to each era. From the ideal of the body in classical art, often viewed through the lens of the male gaze, to the more modern interpretations of Paul Cézanne or Suzanne Valadon - the first woman to paint a man in the nude, frontally and in large format - nudity has continually evolved. The current exhibition reveals its contemporary representation: subjects become active models, in possession of their bodies and desires.
On the central wall, canines populate a frozen landscape. Calling to mind Pieter Brueghel the Elder's painting Hunters in the Snow, the figures seem to be wandering aimlessly in the snow: they walk, dig, or try to seize a cloth with their protruding canines. However, a river suggests a path to follow toward the horizon. These creatures appear to be searching for a haven amid the world's chaos, a place where they can explore their identity in complete tranquility. This specificity echoes Arthur Rimbaud's Une Saison en enfer, where the poet opens up about his inner demons and tries to give meaning to his existence.
Sometimes, artists go as far as painting themselves as isolated figures, withdrawing from the outside world. Between daydreams and intimate reflections, they reveal themselves, accompanied by their desires, their anxieties and their secret pleasures. For human desire occasionally takes on many facets, and sometimes, far from manifesting themselves in action, they find themselves suspended between two states, like this woman seen from behind, admiring a radiant landscape from her window. Between voyeurism and repressed desire, she is drawn to somewhere else: the window becomes at once an opening and a subtle boundary, reminding us that guilty pleasure resides as much in the anticipation as in the intensity of a desire.
Pierre El Khoury, curator of the exhibition Guilty Pleasures, is an art advisor and independent curator.
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¹ The bacchanals were ancient festivals dedicated to Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and ecstasy, celebrations of excess, immoderation and the transgression of norms.
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Sacha Cambier de Montravel
Born in 1995 in Liège (Belgium), he lives and works in Paris (France).
Sacha Cambier de Montravel, a graduate of the Beaux-Arts in Paris in 2022 and La Cambre (Brussels) in 2020, is an artist whose works are rooted in a rich historical tradition, spanning from Byzantine iconography to Flemish painting, while remaining firmly grounded in contemporary practice. Both graphic and material, his creations draw inspiration from masters such as Bosch, Dürer, and Van Eyck, while exploring current themes, notably the exploitation of nature and environmental issues. The artist primarily works on wood, skillfully playing with perspectives and contrasts between shadow and light.
Sacha Cambier de Montravel will present a solo exhibition at the Galerie Nathalie Obadia in Brussels in November 2025. He has also exhibited in several significant events, such as Des canines et des anges at DS Gallery (Paris, 2025) and Revenge Dress at Galerie d'Eylau (Paris, 2024). Additionally, he has participated in group exhibitions, including the 68th Salon de Montrouge in 2025.
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Laslo Familari Roy
Born in 1998 in Paris, Laslo Familari Roy lives and works in Paris (France).
Laslo Familari Roy studied at the Royal School of Arts in Mons in Belgium (2017-2018) before continuing his studies at ENSAV La Cambre in Brussels, where he obtained his Master's degree in 2022. His work, focused on portraiture and the exploration of identity, is characterized by a neo-romantic style. Through oil painting, he creates visual narratives where fiction and reality merge, influenced by German Romantics and American Neo-Expressionists.
His most recent exhibitions include Open Doors at the Cartels Residency (Paris, 2024), Master Show at La Cambre (Brussels, 2022), and Fire and Wind at the Van Der Plas Gallery (New York, 2021). His works are part of several private collections in Paris and New York.
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Daniel Fleur
Born in 1992 in Lemera (DRC), Daniel Fleur lives and works in Malmö (Sweden).
A graduate of the Malmö Art Academy (2013-2018), Daniel Fleur has developed a body of work that transcends the ordinary, turning everyday scenes into moments of intense exhilaration. Using a refined figurative style, he explores themes of social pressures, materialism, and the complexities of identity and social status. His work demonstrates the power of art to question and transcend contemporary realities.
He has recently presented solo exhibitions such as Glasses Half Full at Painters Painting Paintings (2024), Yet to Be Perfected at KANT Gallery (Copenhagen, 2024), and Work Hard, Play Hard at Wadström Tönnheim Gallery (Malmö, 2023). Daniel Fleur has also received several prestigious grants, including the Swedish Art Grants Committee, the Ellen Trotzig Grant from the Malmö Art Museum, and the Helge Axson Johnson Grant. His works are part of major public collections, including those of the X Museum (Beijing), the Swedish Public Art Agency (Stockholm), the Malmö Art Museum (Malmö), and the Skåne Region Art Collection (Sweden), as well as numerous private collections across Europe, Asia, and North America.
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Leo Kpodzro
Born in 2001 in La Garenne-Colombes (France), Leo Kpodzro lives and works in Saint-Ouen (France).
A graduate of the Institut Français de la Mode (IFM) in 2022, Leo Kpodzro creates a body of work where different eras and cultures are seamlessly intertwined. His creations stand out through an exploration of the body, with portraiture and morphological sketches taking a central place.
His paintings, marked by intuitive brushstrokes, reveal a preference for raw painting, where the imprecision of his gestures becomes a source of vitality. His realistic and incisive perspective on contemporary society questions the system, while his figures are characterized by exaggerated physical features - such as oversized ears and hair - highlighting their eccentricity and androgyny. These elements serve as bridges between the real world and the artist's imagination.
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Renske Linders
Born in 1995 in The Hague (the Netherlands), Renske Linders lives and works in Paris (France).
A graduate in Art & Culture from Erasmus University Rotterdam in 2021, Renske Linders explores in her work the social roles assigned to women and the aesthetic pressures imposed by society. Inspired by hyperrealism, she focuses on objects from the female wardrobe, creating evocative fragments, often devoid of faces, to question beauty standards and societal expectations. Her works, combining irony and subversion, reuse fashion codes to celebrate female emancipation. Through meticulous compositions, Renske Linders reinvents feminine symbols, transforming them into points of reflection on the body, identity, and power.
Her recent exhibitions include Revenge Dress at Galerie d'Eylau (Paris, 2024) and Endless Summer at Gallery Sabine Bayasli (Paris, 2024).
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Clément Poplineau
Born in 1991 in Lyon (France), Clément Poplineau lives and works in Brussels (Belgium).
A graduate in painting from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels in 2020, Clément Poplineau creates realistic portraits inspired by Renaissance techniques. His works address contemporary themes such as power, social classes, and identity, shedding light on young people from European suburbs. Through a historical reinterpretation, he sanctifies their social and cultural practices, placing them within a noble and timeless context. His portraits reassess marginalized figures, giving them visibility in the history of art.
Clément Poplineau has recently presented solo exhibitions such as Le Bruit & l'Odeur at Stems Gallery (Brussels, 2023), Au nom des nôtres at Everyday Gallery (Antwerp, 2020), and Palace at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Brussels, 2018). He has also participated in international group exhibitions, including at Arsenal Contemporary Art (New York), WOAW Gallery (Hong Kong), and Art Dubai with Stems Gallery. Through his classical portrait approach, he questions current social and cultural norms, giving a voice to often invisible communities.
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Alexander Skats
Born in 1986 in Gothenburg (Sweden), Alexander Skats lives and works in Malmö (Sweden).
A graduate of the Umeå Academy of Fine Arts in 2018, Alexander Skats recaptures key moments from everyday life, focusing on precise details, particularly the hands of his subjects, to interrogate visual narration and the intensity of the moment. His works, influenced by the cinema of Robert Bresson, combine graphic precision with softness, highlighting the act of seeing and the power of omission.
His recent exhibitions include Avalanche (2024), Tales of Women at Tang Contemporary Art (Hong Kong, 2024), and The Balladist at Galleri Thomas Wallner (2023, Stockholm). In 2021, he completed the public commission Individuals at the Uppsala City Hall (Sweden).
Born in 1995 in Liège (Belgium), he lives and works in Paris (France).
Sacha Cambier de Montravel, a graduate of the Beaux-Arts in Paris in 2022 and La Cambre (Brussels) in 2020, is an artist whose works are rooted in a rich historical tradition, spanning from Byzantine iconography to Flemish painting, while remaining firmly grounded in contemporary practice. Both graphic and material, his creations draw inspiration from masters such as Bosch, Dürer, and Van Eyck, while exploring current themes, notably the exploitation of nature and environmental issues. The artist primarily works on wood, skillfully playing with perspectives and contrasts between shadow and light.
Sacha Cambier de Montravel will present a solo exhibition at the Galerie Nathalie Obadia in Brussels in November 2025. He has also exhibited in several significant events, such as Des canines et des anges at DS Gallery (Paris, 2025) and Revenge Dress at Galerie d'Eylau (Paris, 2024). Additionally, he has participated in group exhibitions, including the 68th Salon de Montrouge in 2025.
---
Laslo Familari Roy
Born in 1998 in Paris, Laslo Familari Roy lives and works in Paris (France).
Laslo Familari Roy studied at the Royal School of Arts in Mons in Belgium (2017-2018) before continuing his studies at ENSAV La Cambre in Brussels, where he obtained his Master's degree in 2022. His work, focused on portraiture and the exploration of identity, is characterized by a neo-romantic style. Through oil painting, he creates visual narratives where fiction and reality merge, influenced by German Romantics and American Neo-Expressionists.
His most recent exhibitions include Open Doors at the Cartels Residency (Paris, 2024), Master Show at La Cambre (Brussels, 2022), and Fire and Wind at the Van Der Plas Gallery (New York, 2021). His works are part of several private collections in Paris and New York.
---
Daniel Fleur
Born in 1992 in Lemera (DRC), Daniel Fleur lives and works in Malmö (Sweden).
A graduate of the Malmö Art Academy (2013-2018), Daniel Fleur has developed a body of work that transcends the ordinary, turning everyday scenes into moments of intense exhilaration. Using a refined figurative style, he explores themes of social pressures, materialism, and the complexities of identity and social status. His work demonstrates the power of art to question and transcend contemporary realities.
He has recently presented solo exhibitions such as Glasses Half Full at Painters Painting Paintings (2024), Yet to Be Perfected at KANT Gallery (Copenhagen, 2024), and Work Hard, Play Hard at Wadström Tönnheim Gallery (Malmö, 2023). Daniel Fleur has also received several prestigious grants, including the Swedish Art Grants Committee, the Ellen Trotzig Grant from the Malmö Art Museum, and the Helge Axson Johnson Grant. His works are part of major public collections, including those of the X Museum (Beijing), the Swedish Public Art Agency (Stockholm), the Malmö Art Museum (Malmö), and the Skåne Region Art Collection (Sweden), as well as numerous private collections across Europe, Asia, and North America.
---
Leo Kpodzro
Born in 2001 in La Garenne-Colombes (France), Leo Kpodzro lives and works in Saint-Ouen (France).
A graduate of the Institut Français de la Mode (IFM) in 2022, Leo Kpodzro creates a body of work where different eras and cultures are seamlessly intertwined. His creations stand out through an exploration of the body, with portraiture and morphological sketches taking a central place.
His paintings, marked by intuitive brushstrokes, reveal a preference for raw painting, where the imprecision of his gestures becomes a source of vitality. His realistic and incisive perspective on contemporary society questions the system, while his figures are characterized by exaggerated physical features - such as oversized ears and hair - highlighting their eccentricity and androgyny. These elements serve as bridges between the real world and the artist's imagination.
---
Renske Linders
Born in 1995 in The Hague (the Netherlands), Renske Linders lives and works in Paris (France).
A graduate in Art & Culture from Erasmus University Rotterdam in 2021, Renske Linders explores in her work the social roles assigned to women and the aesthetic pressures imposed by society. Inspired by hyperrealism, she focuses on objects from the female wardrobe, creating evocative fragments, often devoid of faces, to question beauty standards and societal expectations. Her works, combining irony and subversion, reuse fashion codes to celebrate female emancipation. Through meticulous compositions, Renske Linders reinvents feminine symbols, transforming them into points of reflection on the body, identity, and power.
Her recent exhibitions include Revenge Dress at Galerie d'Eylau (Paris, 2024) and Endless Summer at Gallery Sabine Bayasli (Paris, 2024).
---
Clément Poplineau
Born in 1991 in Lyon (France), Clément Poplineau lives and works in Brussels (Belgium).
A graduate in painting from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels in 2020, Clément Poplineau creates realistic portraits inspired by Renaissance techniques. His works address contemporary themes such as power, social classes, and identity, shedding light on young people from European suburbs. Through a historical reinterpretation, he sanctifies their social and cultural practices, placing them within a noble and timeless context. His portraits reassess marginalized figures, giving them visibility in the history of art.
Clément Poplineau has recently presented solo exhibitions such as Le Bruit & l'Odeur at Stems Gallery (Brussels, 2023), Au nom des nôtres at Everyday Gallery (Antwerp, 2020), and Palace at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Brussels, 2018). He has also participated in international group exhibitions, including at Arsenal Contemporary Art (New York), WOAW Gallery (Hong Kong), and Art Dubai with Stems Gallery. Through his classical portrait approach, he questions current social and cultural norms, giving a voice to often invisible communities.
---
Alexander Skats
Born in 1986 in Gothenburg (Sweden), Alexander Skats lives and works in Malmö (Sweden).
A graduate of the Umeå Academy of Fine Arts in 2018, Alexander Skats recaptures key moments from everyday life, focusing on precise details, particularly the hands of his subjects, to interrogate visual narration and the intensity of the moment. His works, influenced by the cinema of Robert Bresson, combine graphic precision with softness, highlighting the act of seeing and the power of omission.
His recent exhibitions include Avalanche (2024), Tales of Women at Tang Contemporary Art (Hong Kong, 2024), and The Balladist at Galleri Thomas Wallner (2023, Stockholm). In 2021, he completed the public commission Individuals at the Uppsala City Hall (Sweden).