View of the Exhibition by Franz West, via Almine Rech Gallery
Currently on view at the Almine Rech Gallery in Brussels is Franz West’s “Double Squint” including works by Tamuna Sirbiladze and Rudolf Polanszky. The exhibition features new works by West including painting, papiers mâchés, outdoors pieces as well as joint work with artists Polanszky and Sirbiladze.
More text and related links after the jump….
Lemur (2009) by Franz West, via Almine Rech Gallery
Franz West studied at the Vienna Academy for Fine Arts during the 1960s when Viennese Actionism dominated the Austrian art scene. As a result, elements of performance art and an emphasis on the body are particularly found in his work. West nevertheless says that his work is a reaction against Actionism.
Table in Aspic (2009) by Franz West, via Almine Rech Gallery
West’s installations and sculptures are part of a history in the artist’s oeuvre. In 1974 he created his first “Pabstuck” otherwise known as “fitting pieces” or “adaptables.” They were a series of small sculptures made out of wood and fragments of wire netting covered in papier mâché and painted in white. For the artist, the “Pabstuck” is a primary process of his art making practices. During the eighties Franz West transformed these works into larger installation pieces often made out of aluminum. Many of the works in this exhibition follow the “Pabstuck” principle: they are humble and modest in appearance, and explore the relationship to the body, as well as various socio-cultural issues.
Franz West exhibition view, via Almine Rech Gallery
Related Links:
Exhibition Page [Almine Rech Gallery]
-R.A.P