A l'affût, 2023

Pascal Wolff  

Artist painter, Pascal Wolff has been developing a singular body of work dedicated to human and animal portraiture since 2016. White pencil on black paper has become his signature, a graphic language that reveals light and gives full intensity to the gazes he represents.

His artistic universe is centered on portraiture, human as well as animal. Driven by a constant search for accuracy and sensitivity, he strives to translate the intensity of a gaze, the presence of a face, or the personality of an animal. His work, both realistic and poetic, highlights the beauty of living things and invites attentive contemplation.

For several years, he has regularly exhibited in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg. His work has been notably presented at several editions of Animal Art in Auteuil and Brussels, at the Autumn Salon of Lunéville, at the Beaux-Arts Salons of Luxembourg and Metz, at the National Animal Art Salon of Bry-sur-Marne in 2023, 2024, and on the occasion of his 50th National Salon of Animal Arts in 2026, as well as at Art Capital with Les Artistes Français in 2024, 2025, and 2026. He is also selected for the Autumn Salon of Paris 2025 and 2026 in the drawing category.

His career has been rewarded with several distinctions, including the Gold Medal of the Academy of Arts, Sciences and Letters in 2024, the Bronze Medal of the Artistes Français at Art Capital 2026, the Gold Medal of the Beaux-Arts of Metz in the pastel section, the Canson prize at Art'stom Nancy in 2025, the First Prize of the City at the Cattenom Biennale 2026, as well as the public prize at the Sanary-sur-Mer pastel Biennale 2026.

Today, Pascal Wolff pursues an artistic approach where technical mastery is put to the service of emotion. Through each of his drawings, he seeks to create a meeting between the subject represented and the viewer, revealing what makes each gaze unique.

Artistic approach

Since 2016, drawing has become much more than an artistic practice: it is a space of silence and concentration where time seems suspended. Working mainly with white pencil on black paper, I bring forth the light from the darkness. Each line progressively reveals a presence, an emotion, a story.

My work revolves around portraiture, whether human or animal. In both cases, I seek to go beyond simple resemblance to reveal what makes each being unique. A face like an animal gaze tells a story, translates an emotion, invites a meeting.

Human portraits allow me to explore the expressiveness, sensitivity, and depth of the gaze. Animal portraits extend this same search. Beyond realism, I strive to reveal the personality of each animal, its strength, its vulnerability, and that silent presence that connects us to the living.

Deeply sensitive to the beauty of nature and the fragility of many species, I find in drawing a way to pay tribute to them. Without seeking to illustrate a discourse, my works invite a more attentive gaze upon the living world and the richness of its diversity.

The choice of black paper fully participates in this approach. Where traditional drawing builds forms through shadow, I reveal the light. This graphic writing confers a particular presence to the subjects and creates an atmosphere that is at once sober, intense, and timeless.