From April 10 to December 31, 2025, the Pace Gallery in New York is presenting an extraordinary exhibition of drawings by David Byrne. Byrne has drawn nine works on the walls of the gallery's stairwell landings between its first and seventh floors. David Byrne has produced these drawings over the course of several days in April 2025.
For these works, which he produced over the course of several days in April 2025, Byrne has depicted his figures at life-size, aiming for the public to engage with and perceive them in fresh ways. The drawings will remain on display without a set end date. Over his fifty-year career, Byrne has developed a multifaceted fine arts practice that includes drawing, photography, installation, performance, and design. His first significant exhibition with Pace was held in New York in 2003.
David Byrne: Stairwell Drawings / Pace Gallery, New York. 540 West 25th Street, New York City, September 4, 2025.
About the Artist
David Byrne was raised in Baltimore where he briefly attended the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in 1971 after transferring from the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence. Byrne studied photography, performance, and video production at MICA. In 1975 Byrne co-founded the group Talking Heads, who in the 80s introduced an innovative visual approach to their performances. Byrne has been involved with photography, drawing, installations, performance and design since college and has been publishing and exhibiting his work since the 1990s. Like his music, Byrne’s visual work has the capacity to elevate and transform ordinary elements into iconic ones and challenges our fundamental notions of what can be classified as art.
