ELISE NGUYEN QUOC

Elise Nguyen Quoc (b. Trappes, France) lives and works in Paris. In 2023, Nguyen Quoc received her MFA with honors from Beaux-Arts de Paris. Prior to that, she graduated with honors from Villa Arson and completed an exchange program at Kyoto City University of Arts in 2022.

Nguyen Quoc's works defy categorization as mere paintings or drawings. They are primarily made from her photographs, which capture elusive remnants-unnamable, bodiless, objectless, and devoid of any recognizable iconographic language. Her works are records of activities ranging from empty ballpoint pens to the bottom of a paint tray. She draws inspiration for her work from everyday habits. She works with daily gestures, precise schedules, and traces left behind, whether generated by someone else, by accident, or by her own practice. She tracks things, catches their scent, and responds when something calls to her. If an object seems to have the potential for inscription, to become a signal, she works on it. "The less comprehensible the subject, the more attention is drawn to its technical production," she remarks. The advantage of not understanding the what is that you explore the how. The significance of her images lies not only in the image represented but also in the process of their creation, which is an integral part of Nguyen Quoc's practice and how it is perceived.

Nguyen Quoc's work has been shown in solo and group exhibitions internationally: Micheline Szwajcer, Antwerp (2025), Nino Mier, New York (2025), Gratin, New York (2024), among others.