Ariana Papademetropoulos Discusses Her Immersive Paris Exhibition, Featuring a Nine-Foot-Wide Fish Tankv

Ariana Papademetropoulos’s latest exhibition, titled “Glass Slipper,” is more than a fairy tale. Currently on view through April 11 at Thaddaeus Ropac’s space in Paris, the show features paintings from two different series—one hyper-realistically depicts dresses in dry cleaning bags, the other chairs floating in different landscapes—as well as an installation consisting of a fish tank and mattress in which visitors are invited to lay on and don some headphones to listen to a commissioned soundtrack. The artist wanted to transform the gallery into a ritualized space, where water, portals, and invisible forces create an immersive encounter. Below, Papademetropoulos describes how she conceived of the exhibition, her various influences, and what she thinks keeps art alive.