Galería Javier López is pleased to present the first solo exhibition in Madrid by Swiss artist, John Armleder (Geneva, 1948). Internationally recognized, his versatile work lies in between art and life. His art shows a clear vision of XXth century art history, and he specifically addresses the dilemma of object-ness. It comes as no coincidence that Armleder founded Ecart, a Fluxus group, in Geneva active from the late 60s till the early 80s. The anti-formalist philosophy of the group was to encourage creative activities, which combined art and life, such as: performances, exhibitions, books or CDs. Ecart’s space became a gathering place that brought together distinguished prominent artists from the seventies, functioning more like a studio than a gallery space. Olivier Mosset, Annette Messager or Daniel Spoerri, were some of the regulars frequenting the studio.
From 1979 onwards, Armleder began to exhibit his so-called “FS,” Furniture Sculpture. These pieces comprise the pairing of daily objects with paintings. The artist does this either by integration, in which case the object becomes the canvas, or by placement side by side, where the object becomes like any other element of the pictorial composition. Armleder’s combination choices provide proof as to how far away we have moved from a Rauschenberg or Duchamp’s readymades; meaning, from the object’s placement within an artistic context or in a metaphoric way from its exhibitory nature. Instead, these works unfold from the “domestic microcosm“ and present the viewer with a daily interior. The viewer stands no longer in the presence of the object in an exhibition room, but embraces a space that recollects life and its relations. His work embeds a drastic change of perception, essential in delineating the passage from modernity through to post-modernity; characterized by the major shift from an experimental phase to an era of great transformations in communications, relations and participation. Form no longer seems to follow its function, but pursue its communication trail. These works, like all of his oeuvre, establish Armleder’s mastery over the art of blending history’s course with his particular conception of the universe of forms.
This exhibition presents a selection of his different lines of work, which the artist explores simultaneously. All works, recent productions, are composed in different media, including: canvases - the so-called “Pour Paintings,” - mixed media, neon, and furniture - sculpture (FS).
Highlights of John Armleder’s solo exhibitions including those organized by: Le Magasin in Grenoble - France, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Kunstraum in Innsbruck - Austria. He has participated in principal collective exhibitions, among which the following are noteworthy: “One Thing After Another / Open Ends,“ The Museum of Modern Art, New York; “Ornament and Abstraction,“ Foundation Beyeler, Basel; “Replay,” Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva; the last Biennal in Venice, and in Spain “Retos de un siglo” at the Centro Cultural Conde Duque in Madrid. In addition, he will partake in the 7th edition of the Biennale d’Art Contemporain in Lyon - France.
