Paul Wallach studied Art at the University of Wisconsin and Applied Arts at the University of Boston. He participated in a residency with Mark di Suvero during the 1990s, before moving to Paris in 1994.
Paul Wallach’s sculptures are composed of very simple materials. They grow from a dynamic point in the wall and spread out in space, as if they were suspended, in order to interact with the surrounding space. After a long observation, materials – entirely heterogeneous such as wood, plaster, cloth, metal or glass – show a certain consistency that creates the unity of the work. These different materials are interlinked and, with their specific weight, generate a delicate balance, arising from the dynamic of gravity. The permanent search for a centre of gravity is a constitutive element of form. None of his sculptures can be understood with just a single glance. Each point of view is very different. Between the wall and these elements, Paul Wallach creates a meditative interval. Reflects of the shadows and colours are an integral part of the sculpture and our perception is constantly challenged. The artist’s sculptures are continuously revealing hidden spaces, even inside of the work. Paul Wallach’s works are a journey through geometry and its multiple landscapes – both spatiotemporal and mental. We always experience a different perception of them depending on the time, our mood, the light or our state of mind. Paul Wallach’s sculptures renew our sensory perception.
The Gallery Jeanne Bucher Jaeger organised two solo show on Paul Wallach : “Falling Up” in 2010, and “h e r e t o f o r e” in 2013. In 2014, the Museum of modern and contemporary art of Saint-Etienne showcased an important solo exhibition on the artist’s sculptures, entitled : “WHERE WHAT WAS”, which was also presented at the Domaine de Kerguéhennec in Britanny. Paul Wallach has worked on a site specific installation in the Chapel Saint-Nicolas-des-Eaux in Pluméliau. In 2015, a work by Paul Wallach is presented at the exhibition “Quinte-Essence”, which celebrated the gallery’s 90 years of activity.
For the 2016 edition of CHOICES Collectors Week-End in Paris, the gallery presented the sculpture Madeleine by Paul Wallach, displayed at the Palais de Tokyo in a show curated by Laurent Le Bon and Émilie Bouvard. In connexion with this event, the gallery hosted a solo show of the artist entitled “B R E T H R E N” featuring his latest sculptures.
In 2017, a work by Paul Wallach is presented in the exhibition “Passion de l’Art – Galerie Jeanne Bucher Jaeger depuis 1925”, first retrospective devoted to the galerie, at Musée Granet in Aix-en-Provence, France. The gallery also presents Paul Wallach’s work in the thematical exhibitions : “Corps et Ames” and “Whispers from the Earth”.
In 2018, the monumental sculpture by Paul Wallach, Down to the Ground was inaugurated in Salzburg. Invited by the Kraüthugel-Salburg Foundation, the artist has imagined a 40 × 45 meters sculpture, composed of large blocs of white concrete, representing a star-like shape, which is only visible from the Fortress Hohensalzburg, the largest Medieval castle preserved in Central Europe. A drawing of this sculpture is presented at the gallery during the exhibition “Dessins de Sculpteurs”. A serie of new works is also produced by Paul Wallach for the Collegiate Church, in connection with his installation Down to the Ground. Today, the temporary presentation of Paul Wallach’s site specific sculpture work has been extended and negociations are currently ongoing to maintain Paul Wallach’s installation permanently in the city of Salzburg.
In 2021, the gallery is devoting a solo exhibition to Paul Wallach entitled Yielding Place.