Pascale Girardin, inpired by nature

In the world of art and design, ceramics have been looked down on for quite some time, but mural artist Pascale Girardin has been trying to change that mentality since the beginning of her career. Judging by her projects in a Shanghai hotel, in a Las Vegas restaurant, and in a mythical store in New York, she is now reaping the fruits of her labor.

The language I used 20 years ago is now much more accepted. I said that 2019 was the year of handwork. People are starting to show interest in handwork, especially young people. They are starting to discover that they can do more with their fingers than sliding them across a screen.

Meeting with interior designers is what allowed you to progress and to surpass yourself, correct?

Yes, absolutely! Jean-Pierre Viau was the first one to trust me, and then I got the opportunity to work on small projects with large Toronto firm Yabu Pushelberg, and, eventually, bigger projects such as the China Grill in Chicago, and the Finn Restaurant in the Mirage Casino in Las Vegas. This is what really put me on the map – two hundred square feet of stacked tiles, so 600 square feet when they are spread out – a pretty interesting experience, to say the least. Thankfully, I have a project manager to assist me now.

Which project has been the biggest challenge?

I would say the Four Seasons Hotel in Montreal, especially because of the engineering aspect. The challenge was to fill a space within the building. It was an open-air atrium that lit up the pathways leading to the rooms, spread across 16 floors. So, I decided to represent the seasons of Montreal with some flower petals.

You haven’t lost your sense of wonder?

It’s still there, probably because the firing of clay is always mysterious and surprising.