For the Montreal based artist, paper is an endless inspiration. A surface for writing, painting or crafts, it can be ripped from a notebook and after a few quick folds, fly across the room as an airplane. 

As an artist, illusionist and technician, Sébastien’s curiosity and fascination with paper takes many forms. The most dramatic are his large site-specific sculptures created directly on the gallery walls. Folded, crumpled and twisting, these paper sculptures bloom outwards, venturing out onto the floor like mysterious beings brought to life. 

“For Sébastien, paper is not just the surface or material for his artworks, but the subject,” says Art Gallery of St. Albert Curator, Emily Baker.  “And while every piece in the exhibition is about paper, and looks like paper, not everything is actually made of paper”. Sébastien meticulously crafts these works from of aluminum - cutting, folding, shaping and painting over painstaking hours until the illusion is perfect.

Across the room, colourful pages of crumpled paper seem to burst from their elegant frames. But these too are illusions, spectacular trompe l’oeil creations made with acrylic and spray paint. Upon closer inspection, each is perfectly flat. Post-it notes and notebook pages also hang on the walls, hosting doodles, notes to self, and splatters of paint.

“This is a space of infinite possibility, playful imagination and most importantly, delight,” Baker adds.  Ephemeral Language / Langue éphémère runs until April 30.