Camille Ulysses Châtelain (b. 1988 Amsterdam, the Netherlands)
My practice explores how storytelling shapes our understanding of ourselves and our place in the world. Drawing on mythology, the natural world, and the changing circumstances of geography and time, I examine how humans create narratives to make sense of existence. These themes have developed alongside the places in which I have lived, most prominently during my years in Mexico from 2016 to 2024.
The transformation of the natural world by humans, and our changing perception of where we belong within it, are recurring themes in my work. Our experience of reality is shaped by the time and place in which we live; although life in the 21st century differs profoundly from that of centuries ago, many fundamental questions remain constant: Why are we here? What happens to us? What is our relationship to the world around us?
My work moves between the personal and the universal, exploring how stories and images evolve across cultures and generations while expressing enduring aspects of the human experience. My longstanding fascination with astronomy, and more recently my practice as an astrophotographer, have become important sources of inspiration, extending these questions beyond the human and terrestrial world.
I use a wide variety of painterly techniques while remaining conscious of their historical precedents. My work draws from the artistic traditions of the Netherlands and its wider region, as well as from the vivid use of colour I encountered during my years in Mexico. I am particularly drawn to the drama of Renaissance and Romantic painting, combined with the intensity of colour, gesture, and brushwork found in Abstract Expressionism. Through these influences, I seek to create paintings in which historical and contemporary ways of seeing can coexist.
Exhibitions:
2026: Lazo Gallery, Madrid (group)
2026, Zeit Gallery, Barcelona (group)
2025, Timeraiser Arts, Barcelona (group)
2024, So Art Gallery, Amsterdam (group)
2023, So Art Gallery, Amsterdam (group)
2020, Galeria Misrachi, CDMX, Mexico (group)
2019, Westcord Art Hotel, Amsterdam (solo)
2018, Instituto Carlos Fuentes, Xalapa (solo)
2018, Westcord Art Hotel, Amsterdam (solo)
2018, So Art Gallery, Amsterdam (group)
2015, HB55 Kunsträum, studio exhibition, Berlin (solo)
2014, Museum de Noord, Amsterdam (group)
