Helen Berggruen: Suspension of the Future Tense
Presents
A new special exhibition of paintings by
Helen Berggruen
Suspension of the Future Tense
“It can be light and dark at the same time.”
T. J. Clark, The Sight of Death
October 8 – November 8, 2026
The Helen Berggruen opening reception and book signing scheduled for Thursday, October 8, 2026, has been postponed. We are so sorry to have to postpone the opening. A new date will be announced. Thank you for your understanding.
The exhibition
Arader Galleries presents an exhibition of paintings by Helen Berggruen, drawn in equal measure from interiors, still lifes, landscapes, and figures in landscapes. With mixed patterns, tactile surfaces, and a full-spectrum palette, Berggruen transforms familiar scenes into richly animated worlds where observation and invention meet, and time seems to pause.
Opening Reception & Book Signing at Our Saint Helena Gallery
The Helen Berggruen opening reception and book signing scheduled for Thursday, October 8, 2026, has been postponed. We are so sorry to have to postpone the opening. A new date will be announced. Thank you for your understanding.
Arader Galleries, Saint Helena
1380 Main Street, Suite 103
Saint Helena, CA 94574
Inside / Outside Past / Present Stillness / Motion Light / Dark
The exhibition
Suspension of the Future Tense
The title comes from art historian T. J. Clark’s The Sight of Death, a sustained meditation on paintings by Nicolas Poussin. It names one of painting’s peculiar powers: the past can be implied, the future can remain unknown, and yet the present moment can feel complete.
That suspension runs throughout Berggruen’s work. Rooms open onto landscapes; patterns create movement within stillness; books, tables, windows, animals, and figures appear as if caught between memory and observation. Her recurring contrasts are not oppositions so much as simultaneous states.
The artist
Helen Berggruen
For many years, Helen Berggruen has divided her time between San Francisco and Napa Valley, where she has a studio and paints. She feels a deep loyalty to the valley, which remains an important part of her life and work. She has exhibited widely in galleries and museums in the United States and abroad.
Her paintings encompass interiors, still lifes, landscapes, and figures in landscapes. Vibrant color, layered pattern, and tactile surfaces animate everyday scenes: curtains twist, flora gestures, skies ripple, and familiar objects take on playful vitality. Windows often become thresholds between memory and invention, opening each composition to narrative possibility.
The book
The Song Inside of Things
Published as part of the Hurtwood Artist & Gallery Series in 2026, Berggruen’s new monograph offers an intimate view of her practice, working process, and the ideas behind her paintings. It includes a foreword by Mary Kate Tankard, an extended essay by Craig Burnett, and an interview by Jeff Gunderson.
The Helen Berggruen opening reception and book signing scheduled for Thursday, October 8, 2026, has been postponed. We are so sorry to have to postpone the opening. A new date will be announced. Thank you for your understanding.