Villa Atrata is a site for exhibitions, research, hospitality and collaborative projects, focusing on contemporary art, master crafts and food. Advocating for a more measured approach to contemporary creation, its activities are based on the southern edge of the Loire Valley and its Paris extension, located in the Jardin du Palais Royal.
STORY
Taking its name from the painting in Francis Picabia’s Transparences series, Villa Atrata becomes a sign of what lies outside the realm of normal expectations.
Gil Presti opened Villa Atrata in May 2022 with a residency and exhibition by Nick Mauss. He spent 12 years living and working in New York, where he worked with Larry Gagosian at 980 Madison Avenue, before co-founding the Campoli Presti gallery in London and Paris. For 20 years, the gallery presented exhibitions by historical figures such as Martin Barré, Marcel Broodthaers, Sarah Charlesworth, William Eggleston, Michael Krebber, Louise Lawler, Michelangelo Pistoletto and Franz West. Contemporary artists Katherine Bradford, Liz Deschenes, Rochelle Feinstein, Jutta Koether, Scott Lyall, Nick Mauss, Amy Sillman, Cheyney Thompson, John Miller, Eileen Quinlan, Blake Rayne, Reena Spaulings formed the core of its programme.
Opened in October 2023, Villa Atrata Paris extension, is a 22 sqm gallery space providing an intimate and focused environment located in the historical Jardin du Palais Royal.
The Palais Royal, located in the center of the city, just a few steps from the Louvre Museum, the Comédie Française, the Bourse de Commerce — Pinault Collection and the Cartier Foundation, has been the cultural heart of Paris for over four centuries.
CURRENT EXHIBITION
Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut
At The Palais Royal
4 December – 28 March
Villa Atrata, Palais Royal
Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut’s practice is centered on meticulous woodwork, with a particular focus on carved oak. Working at the intersection of sculpture, master craftsmanship and conceptual design, he situates his work within a broader reflection on dwelling and architecture. Challenging the utilitarian function of furniture, he creates “domestic sculptures” that are raw in material yet soft and refined in execution. His world is inhabited by anthropomorphic figures he calls “Mensch” and “fetishes”.
For this exhibition, Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut is installing a temporary habitat specifically designed for Villa Atrata. It is a celebration of friendship, where each object is a unique piece. The space is conceived as a living environment in constant evolution, transforming according to the invitations extended to other creators and thinkers.
The front area of the gallery is transformed into a ceremonial space featuring wall assemblages and sculptural seating, where the distinction between artwork and utilitarian object is deliberately blurred. A towering structure reminiscent of a library, serving as a monumental frame for the “Mensch”, dominates the room. A singular throne, specifically dedicated to the female figure, is positioned as a seat of honor at the heart of the installation.
The rear section is arranged like a creative laboratory housing a cabinet of curiosities, a large landscape-table complemented by seating and a bench, creating a functional and welcoming environment that encourages meaningful exchanges.
The installation at Villa Atrata is an invitation to inhabit art: Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut reminds us that the domestic object, often relegated to mere utility, is in fact the silent guardian of our deepest human connections.
Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut is a French sculptor, conceptual designer and architect whose practice is deeply influenced by nature. He lives and works in the heart of the Fontainebleau forest, where he gathers naturally fallen wood to create what he calls his “landscape furniture.”
Selected collaborations: Saint Laurent, Hermès, Alain Ducasse and Baccarat.
UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS
Shinsuke Kawahara
Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut
24 Seasons
Opening reception
Thursday 12 février, 6 – 8 pm
30 galerie de Montpensier
Jardin du Palais Royal
河原シンスケ
ジャン-ギヨウム · マチュウ
「24 Seasons」
オープニングレセプション
2月12日 6 〜 8 pm 午後
30 Galerie de Montpensier
パレ・ロワイヤル庭園
Alexander Tovborg
Opening 28 March 2026
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
Solo exhibition curated by Kristian Vistrup Madsen
Alexander Tovborg (b. 1983, lives and works in Copenhagen, Denmark) studied at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste, Karlsruhe, Germany and the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Painting, drawing, sculpture, and performance share equal space in Tovborg’s multidisciplinary practice that explores the roles that religion and mythology play in human identity and the world we inhabit.
His research into the origins and contemporary iterations of symbology, mysticism, and religious archetypes has yielded varied bodies of work that span subjects such as the hallucinogenic and erotic first meeting of Adam and Eve, the lost adolescence of Jesus Christ, and a wedding procession of paintings representing the marriage of heaven and hell, among other examples.
His work was presented in numerous institutions, including : ARoS, Aarhus, Denmark ; Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen, Denmark ; Grand Palais, Paris, France ; Museet for Religiøs Kunst, Lemvig, Denmark ; Museet for Samtidskunst, Roskilde, Denmark ; Camden Arts Centre, London, UK ; Kunsthalle Bremen, Bremen, Germany ; AKEN, Copenhagen, Denmark ; Holstebro kunstmuseum, Holstebro, Denmark ; KØS museum for kunst i det offentlige rum, Køge, Denmark ; Spritmuseum, Stockholm, Sweden ; Vejen Kunstmuseum, Vejen, Denmark ; IMMA Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland ; Museo Nacional de la Estampa, Mexico City, Mexico ; Kunsthallen 44 Møen, Askeby, Denmark ; Kunstmuseet Køge Skitsesamling, Køge, Denmark ; Odsherred Kunstmuseum, Asnæs, Denmark ; Herning Museum of Contemporary Art, Herning, Denmark ; Hundige Kunsthal, Hundige, Denmark ; Randers Kunstmusem, Randers, Denmark.
PAST EXHIBITIONS
Will Sheldon
The Sleepy Château and the Wounded Soldier in the Summertime, Chapter 1
28 August – 28 September 2025
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
L’Estropié, Chapter 26 September – 4 October 2025Villa Atrata Palais Royal
Nino Kapanadze, Cavalcades5 June – 19 July 2025Villa Atrata Palais Royal
Nino Kapanadze, Cascades24 May – 22 June 2025Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
Liminal Ma 間29 April – 31 May 2025Villa Atrata Palais-Royal
Anne Laure Sacriste, River of Shadows25 January – 8 March 2025Villa Atrata Palais-Royal
Nina Childress, DOLLY30 November 2024 – 18 January 2025Villa Atrata Palais-Royal
Madeleine Roger-Lacan | Pierre Klossowski
13 October – 23 November 2024
Villa Atrata Palais Royal
Elené Shatberashvili
Paintings and Drawings, Chapter 1
7 September – 8 October 2024Villa Atrata Palais Royal
Crimson, Chapter 228 June – 20 July 2025
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
Guillaume Dénervaud, Thulite
18 May – 30 June 2024
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
25 May – 13 July 2024
Villa Atrata, Paris
Leonor Fini, Erotic Drawings
19 March – 11 May 2024
Villa Atrata, Paris
Cheyney Thompson, f(torse)
10 February – 16 March 2024
Villa Atrata, Paris
Karen Swami, Bas-reliefs
2 December 2023– 13 January 2024
Villa Atrata, Paris
Sophie Reinhold, Prediction of Forecast
23 September – 11 October 2023
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
15 October – 11 November 2023
Villa Atrata Palais-Royal
Dustin Hodges, Pink Shadow
27 May – 1 August 2023
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
7 June – 1 July 2023
Villa Atrata Palais-Royal
Megan Francis Sullivan, Likenesses
21 May – 29 October 2022
Villa Atrata, La Roche Posay
Nick Mauss, Likenessess
21 May – 29 October 2022
Villa Atrata, Angles-sur-l’Anglin
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Villa Atrata Angles-sur-l’Anglin
26 Rue du Pont
86260 Angles-sur-l’Anglin
The exhibitions at the chapel are open on
Saturdays and Sundays from 2PM to 6PM, or by appointment.
Villa Atrata Palais Royal
30 Galerie de Montpensier
Jardin du Palais Royal
75001 Paris
Tuesday – Saturday from 1 PM to 6 PM
Gil Presti
Villa Atrata
86260 Angles-sur-l’Anglin
Chapel St. Croix
26 Rue du Pont
86260 Angles-sur-l’Anglin
The exhibitions at the chapel are open to public
Saturday and Sunday from 2PM to 6PM
or by appointment
Villa Atrata Paris
30 Galerie de Montpensier
Jardin du Palais Royal
75001 Paris
Tuesday – Saturday from 1 PM to 6 PM
