Championed Artist
Rouy’s practice underlines the parts of ourselves that we find uncomfortable, accentuated by ardent depictions of bodily fluids; such as blood, pus, semen, faeces, milk, urine, sweat and saliva. There is a link between bodily fluids and the notion of being a human and our mortality.
To imitate her hyperawareness of having a body she subverts and delocalizes depictions of female and male genitalia to form androgenous or fluid figures that resonate to the artist’s identity while also removing a fixed identity.
London based artist Elsa Rouy (Sittingbourne, Kent) creates art with a female gaze. Rouy explores new ways of expressing semi-autobiographical and social narratives following a discourse related to the human condition.
She has an interest in female sexual expression and the imperfect-self. Her artworks satirize immoral thoughts that are terrifying, centring around feelings of shame and guilt. To explore this, Rouy paints hedonistic grotesque figures often of monstrous women with their sexual organs revealed. To imitate her hyperawareness of having a body she subverts and delocalizes depictions of female and male genitalia to form androgenous or fluid figures that resonate to the artist’s identity while also removing a fixed identity.
Rouy’s practice underlines the parts of ourselves that we find uncomfortable, accentuated by ardent depictions of bodily fluids; such as blood, pus, semen, faeces, milk, urine, sweat and saliva. There is a link between bodily fluids and the notion of being a human and our mortality. The leaking of bodily fluids breaks the containment associated with correctness and purity, which are constantly strived for in our society, our bodies and our minds. The bodily fluids are presented to expose the unsavoury parts of being human that are considered taboo.
Her artwork explores societal and internal power roles. Rouy appropriates the human body to discuss relationships between people and the self that are saturated with child-like dependency, intrusion and boundaries. Alongside a distortion of interior and exterior bodies, the artworks denote emotional illusion, trust and trepidation between people. The figures often have connections to expulsion and birth that act simultaneously as a harbouring or a needed release of these emotional burdens.
B. Sittingbourne, UK. Based in London UK.
Education
2018-2021 Camberwell college of the arts (UAL), BA Painting, London
2016-2018 University for the creative arts, Level 3 extended diploma in art and design: Distinction, Rochester
Solo Exhibitions
2022, Upcoming, Guts Gallery London
2021, A Demon in a Sundress, Guts Gallery, Lonon
2020, Plastic Doesn’t Sweat, Guts Gallery, London
2020, Platform, Unit London, London
Group Exhibitions
2022, Upcoming, Out of Nowhere, Oriele Steiner and Amelie Peace, Anderson Contemporary, London
2022, Upcoming, Kupfer Projects, London
2022, CACOTOPIA, Annka Kultys, London
2021, Brain Food Charity Auction, The Auction Collective, London
2021, I Have My Eye On You, Everyday Gallery, Antwerp
2021, Reality Check, Guts Gallery, London, UK
2021, Don't Go South, Studio Berkheim, Stuttgart
2021, A New Art World, Guts Gallery, London, UK
2021, Introducing, The Shop at Sadie Coles HQ, London
2021, For The Many Not The Few, Guts Gallery, London
2021, Hopscotch, Safehouse 1, London
2020, Limbo, Everyday Gallery, Antwerp
2020, Begin Again, Guts Gallery, London
2020, When spiders unite they can tie down a lion, Daniel Raphael Gallery, London
2020, Drawn Together, Unit London, London
2020, No time like the present, Public Gallery, London
2020, Guts Gallery Claps back, Guts Gallery, London
2020, Hands in the digital age, Molly Stedgwick.com, London
2020, When Shit Hits The Fan, Guts Gallery, Guts Gallery, London
2020, Don’t Panic, Southwark Park Galleries, London
Press
January 2022, Jess Kelham, Spotlight - Feature Provocative, London-based painter Elsa Rouy, The Wick
24th August 2021, TJ Sidhu, Elsa Rouy is Challenging the Idea of sex being sexy, The Face magazine
15th July 2021, Anna Woodward, Elsa Rouy, The Artists Contemporary Podcast
24th March 2021, Charlie Mills, Elsa Rouy, Coeval Magazine
16th March 2021, Ashleigh Kane, Edition 003: safe spaces, women*, and art, Eye Spied
4th February 2021, TJ Sidhu, Elsa Rouy is the British art scene’s bold new romantic, The Face Magazine
7th September 2020, Interview with Elsa Rouy, Saint Maison Gallery
19th August 2020, Archive 00, Saint Maison Gallery
13th August 2020, Scarlett Baker, Begin Again: the online exhibition challenging austerity and racial oppression, The Love magazine
27th March 2020, TJ Sidhu, When shit hits the fan (in the art world), The Face magazine
23rd March 2020, Katie Dunn, Guts Gallery present ‘When shit hits the fan’ digital Instagram exhibition opening this Thursday 26th March, FAD magazine
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London Gallery Weekend: the emerging galleries shaking up the capital’s art scene
Ben Luke, Evening Standard, 10 May 2022 -
TEN’S TO SEE: ‘I COULD ALWAYS CRACK A JOKE’ BY ELSA ROUY AT GUTS GALLERY
Paul Toner, 10 Magazine , 6 May 2022 -
Elsa Rouy in “CACOTOPIA 06” at Annka Kultys Gallery, London
Cecilia March, Flash Art , 12 Feb 2022 -
Ten women artists and designers on their love of Louise Bourgeois
Emily Dinsdale, DAZED, 22 Feb 2022 -
Guts Director Ellie Pennick and Elsa Rouy interview with The Wick Culture
The Wick Culture, 4 Jan 2022 -
FAD Magazine feature Guts latest exhibition REALITY CHECK
Mark Westall , FAD Magazine , 23 Sep 2021 -
DAZED features latest Guts exhibition, REALITY CHECK
Emily Dinsdale, DAZED, 21 Sep 2021 -
THE FACE INTERVIEWS ELSA ROUY ON HER LATEST SOLO EXHIBITION
TJ SIDHU, THE FACE , 24 Aug 2021 -
Guts Gallery featured in The New York Times 'Gallery Weekend Brings London's Art Scene Back to Life '
Scott Reyburn, The New York Times , 7 Jun 2021 -
Coeval Magazine Interviews Elsa Rouy
Coeval Magazine, 24 Mar 2021 -
Artist Elsa Rouy #01 Art Adventures Podcast
Custorian, Soundcloud, 5 Mar 2021 -
Elsa Rouy is the British art scene’s bold new romantic
TJ Sidhu, THE FACE, 4 Feb 2021 -
Top Ten Shows from the UK and Ireland
Mimi Chu, Frieze, 12 Feb 2021 -
INTERVIEW WITH ELSA ROUY
SAINT MAISON, 7 Sep 2020 -
ON VIEW BY FLASH ART: “It’s 2020 For F*ck Sake” Guts Gallery and Soft Punk / London
Flash Art , 11 Dec 2020 -
IT’S 2020 FOR F*CK SAKE
ART PLUGGED, ART PLUGGED, 30 Sep 2020 -
The London art you can take a virtual tour of right now for free
Lucy Scovell, The Glossary, 29 Mar 2020 -
This Instagram-only exhibition is full of London’s best young artists
Eddy Frankel, Time Out London, 24 Mar 2020 -
Begin Again: The online exhibition challenging austerity and racial oppression
Scarlett Baker , Love Magazine, 13 Aug 2020 -
Scrap that, lets begin again
TJ Sidhu, The Face, 13 Aug 2020 -
Ten's to see 'When Shit Hits the Fan', The insta-exhibition by Guts Gallery
Paul Toner, 10 Magazine, 2 Apr 2020 -
Art markets find high-tech ways to reach buyers
Melanie Gerlis, Financial Times, 27 Mar 2020 -
When Shit Hits the Fan (In the Artworld)
TJ Sidhu, The Face, 27 Mar 2020 -
Guts Gallery present ‘When shit hits the fan’ a digital Instagram exhibition
Mark Westall, Fad Magazine, 23 Mar 2020 -
Begin Again is the virtual art exhibition tackling racial inequality
Gunseli Yalcinkaya, Dazed , 14 Aug 2020
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ELSA ROUY
I Could Always Crack A Joke 5 - 26 May 2022‘I Could Always Crack a Joke’ showcases a new body of work by Elsa Rouy that ridicules, empathises with, and embraces the bizarre navigation of the human condition. The exhibition explores an introspective exploration and navigation of the self, using the body and its corporal properties to express ideas centred...Read more -
Supporting the Disaster Emergency Committee
AN ONLINE ARTWORK CHARITY SALE 24 Mar 2022About DEC 'The DEC brings together 15 leading UK aid charities to raise funds quickly and efficiently at times of crisis overseas. In these times of crisis, people in life-and-death situations need our help, and our mission is to save, protect and rebuild lives through effective humanitarian response. Pooling our...Read more -
REALITY CHECK
23 Sep - 3 Oct 2021Opening: Thur 23 Sept 6-9pm Exhibition Location: Anderson Contemporary, Carpenter’s Wharf Studios, 4b Roach Road, London E3 2PA Via Monier Road Footbridge Regular Opening Hours: Wed - Sun 11-6pm Guts Gallery is pleased to present REALITY CHECK, the inaugural exhibition at Anderson Contemporary, a new artist-led gallery space in London....Read more -
ELSA ROUY
A DEMON IN A SUNDRESS 19 - 26 Aug 2021Private View: 19th August 6-9pm Location: 147 Stoke Newington High Street, London, N16 0NY General Opening Hours: 11 - 6pm Request a catalogue A Demon in a Sundress is Elsa Rouy’s (b. 2000, Kent) second solo show with Guts Gallery. Five paintings and two sculptures are...Read more -
A NEW ART WORLD
A NEW ART WORLD IS POSSIBLE. 22 - 29 Jul 2021Private View: Thursday 22 July 6-9pm Opening Hours: Tues - Sun 11am - 6pm Location: 147 Stoke Newington High Street, London, N16 0NY No RSVP's required BUY THE MANIFESTO PRINT NOW Picking up where Guts Gallery’s online show, When Shit Hits the Fan Again (Feb, 2021) left off, A New...Read more -
INTRODUCING
London Gallery Weekend at The Shop at Sadie Coles HQ 4 - 6 Jun 2021London Gallery Weekend 4-6 June 2021 11am - 8pm (Opening day) 11am - 6pm (Regular hours) The Shop at Sadie Coles HQ, 62 Kingly Street, London W1B 5QN Directions > Guts Gallery is excited to announce our exhibition for this year's London Gallery Weekend. 'INTRODUCING' presents a new and...Read more -
WHEN SHIT HITS THE FAN AGAIN
FOR ARTISTS BY ARTISTS, 1 NIGHT ONLY. 4 Feb - 4 Mar 2021Through the invitation extended to established artists into the exhibition. We are hoping to reinstate a balance of power. Allowing established artists to shoulder emerging artists. 50% of sales of works sold by an established artist, will be distributed entirely to all the emerging artists involved. This redistribution of wealth offers a new outlook and model that is fundamentally for artists, by artists, creating an alternative system of support.Read more -
PLASTIC DOESN'T SWEAT
A Debut Solo Show by Elsa Rouy | It's 2020 For F*ck Sake – A Thirteen Artist, Back-to-Back Solo Exhibition Marathon 1 - 5 Oct 2020Elsa Rouy's Debut Solo Show as part of the It's 2020 For F*ck Sake Exhibition MarathonRead more -
BEGIN AGAIN
As society shifts, the art world shifts. We are on the cusp of change. 13 - 27 Aug 2020This is a time to stop, reflect, create dialogue, and put our words into positive action. To begin again we must shoulder each other, listen to each other, work together and collectively change together. As the newest generation of art collectors, we urge you to collect from this exhibition. The revenue made will support The Free Black University and the newest generation of artists.Read more
Begin
to proceed to perform the first or earliest part of some action; commence; start
Again
once more; another time; anew; in addition
With many thanks to Lotte Andersen for her continuous support throughout this exhibition, and to Pallas Citroen, Director of The Bomb Factory Art Foundation. Who is kindly providing a free gallery space as part of The Guts Prize.
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WHEN SHIT HITS THE FAN
Gallery openings have been affected by the spread of coronavirus 26 Mar - 16 Apr 2020Many art-related events, including Guts Gallery's, have either been cancelled or postponed, causing a large economic impact on artists and smaller galleries. We want to challenge this, putting our ethos of supporting underrepresented contemporary voices into action by navigating this set back through a digital Instagram exhibition.Read more