Lot Essay
L’oeuvre de Shusaku Arakawa est le fruit de recherches sur la représentation de l’espace entre construction architecturale et quête spirituelle. Les lignes régulières horizontales et verticales s’allient aux mots et aux lettres pour développer un langage visuel à la fois subtil et poétique. Avant d’intégrer la Mushiano Art University de Tokyo, Arakawa suit des études scientifiques qui déterminent la rigueur de son tracé et la précision de ses dessins. En 1961, il quitte Tokyo pour New York, où il rencontre celle qui deviendra sa compagne et sa muse, la poétesse américaine Madeline Gins. Leur oeuvre de collaboration The Mechanism of Meaning en 1963, bouleverse les mécanismes intellectuels de perception visuelle en jouant avec les mots et les symboles. Dans les années 1990, l’aboutissement de leur réflexion s’attache à conceptualiser l’espace tridimensionnel. Les formes et couleurs variées de leurs architectures invitent les visiteurs à découvrir les possibilités illimitées du corps humain tout en défiant leurs perceptions sensorielles. Présent dans de nombreuses collections publiques, notamment celles du Metropolitan Museum of Art à New York et du Musée Georges Pompidou à Paris, Arakawa jouit d’une vaste reconnaissance internationale et a représenté le Japon lors de la XXXVe Biennale de Venise (1970), de la documenta IV (1968) et de la documenta VI (1977).
The work of Shusaku Arakawa is the result of reflection on the depiction of space between architectural construction and spiritual quest. The even horizontal and vertical lines meld with words and letters to form a visual language that is both subtle and poetic.Before joining Mushiano Art University in Tokyo, Arakawa was a science student, which laid the foundation for the discipline of his lines and the precision of his drawings. In 1961, he left Tokyo for New York, where he met the woman who would become his partner and muse, the American poet Madeline Gins.Their collaborative work The Mechanism of Meaning,in 1963, shook up the intellectual mechanisms of visual perception by playing with words and symbols.In the 1990s, the culmination of their thinking sought to conceptualise three-dimensional space.The varied shapes and colours of their architectural works invite visitors to discover the unlimited possibilities of the human body while defying sensory perceptions.Featured in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Musee Georges Pompidou in Paris, Arakawa enjoys broad international recognition and represented Japan at the 35th Venice Biennale (1970), Documenta 4 (1968) and Documenta 6 (1977).
The work of Shusaku Arakawa is the result of reflection on the depiction of space between architectural construction and spiritual quest. The even horizontal and vertical lines meld with words and letters to form a visual language that is both subtle and poetic.Before joining Mushiano Art University in Tokyo, Arakawa was a science student, which laid the foundation for the discipline of his lines and the precision of his drawings. In 1961, he left Tokyo for New York, where he met the woman who would become his partner and muse, the American poet Madeline Gins.Their collaborative work The Mechanism of Meaning,in 1963, shook up the intellectual mechanisms of visual perception by playing with words and symbols.In the 1990s, the culmination of their thinking sought to conceptualise three-dimensional space.The varied shapes and colours of their architectural works invite visitors to discover the unlimited possibilities of the human body while defying sensory perceptions.Featured in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Musee Georges Pompidou in Paris, Arakawa enjoys broad international recognition and represented Japan at the 35th Venice Biennale (1970), Documenta 4 (1968) and Documenta 6 (1977).