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○ Exhibition Information
Title | Jean-Michel Othoniel
Period | Jun 23 ~ Nov 4, 2012
Venue | Museum Frieder Burda, Baden-Baden
Website | http://www.museum-frieder-burda.de/Exhibitions.9.0.html?&L=1&shadow=399



The sculptures and watercolors in the new series being presented in Baden-Baden revolve around the theme of Noeuds (knots). Huge strings of beads consisting of mirrored, colored glass intertwine to become abstract skeins of movement. The artist combines references to art history with the theories put forward by the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan in this group of works. A body develops in the center of the glass knots that is held and formed by the dynamics of the strands, yet it remains invisible and forever inaccessible. Viewers sense the concentration and serenity in the interior of the Noeuds but are nevertheless left out, blinded by the mirroring glass beads on the paths of movement around this center.

L’In Noir is also being shown, a work Othoniel created in 2010 for the opening exhibition of the Centre Pompidou in Metz. The glass beads, connected by thin threads to form a geometric pattern, hang along the wall like a delicate web for a width of 12 meters. The artist also borrowed the term l’in noir, “un-black,” from Lacan.

The work Collier gris foncé (2011) from the Sammlung Frieder Burda is also on display—a 3.5-meter-tall chain comprised of dark gray glass that hangs from the ceiling and whose four strings of beads come to rest on the floor in fluid movements.

For Othoniel, the appealing aesthetic of his works is an important instrument for initiating a dialogue with the viewer. However, the shimmering and sparkling is clearly deception, as the glistening quality of the works causes a kind of glare and thus blinds the viewer. Othoniel always construes beauty as a visual trap, while the works embrace different levels of meaning that range from erotic associations and the suggestion of valuable materials to confusion due to the monumental formats.

The exhibition in Baden-Baden marks the first time that the work of Jean-Michel Othoniel is being shown at a German museum.

*Contents provided by the Museum Frieder Burda.