'A space with nothing in it is the most beautiful,' says Korean artist Lee Ufan, referring to the new Jean-Michel Wilmotte-designed gallery at Château La Coste – the Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade artist enclave near France’s Aix-en-Provence that was christened by Sean Scully last year.
'But,' adds Ufan, 'the metaphorical aspect is lacking and thus somewhat bland.' To address this blandness, Ufan is installing large tableaux – one, a colourful fresh stroke drawn by a large brush on a white canvas, will interact with another without the stroke in order to create vibration between the two – and two sculptures (all created in his Paris studio) that are meant to demonstrate tension by contrasting steel plate and stone, or large boulders against four thick steel poles.
The paintings and sculptures are intended to reinforce 2014’s House of Air, Ufan’s existing work at the site, where previous commissions have included exhibitions and installations by Louise Bourgeois, Richard Serra and Tatsuo Miyajima, along with architectural pavilions and structures by Frank Gehry, Tadao Ando and Jean Nouvel.
'My artwork gets its live, existential meaning only when it can harmonise with the surrounding space and thus transform the space into a new one,' says Ufan, noting that he considers the works in the new exhibition an extension of House of Air. 'The energy from these contrasts will emanate vitality throughout the entire exhibition.'
While the surrounding French countryside and vineyards did inspire the work, Ufan says his artistic concepts do not fundamentally change as a result of location. The process in his new paintings, however, does differ a bit from his typically restrained brushwork. 'This time I wanted to hint at some changes in my touches. I wanted to display more vitality on the surface by presenting the duality of static state and movement. I wanted to hint at a mythological theme by covering the ground with white gravel stones and by drawing shadows and placing large boulders,' he says. 'The strokes drawn in the small dark interior space are my interpretations of the prehistoric caves that existed throughout southern France.'
Platonic allegory and the cave paintings at Chauvet filtered through the eye of a Paris-based, Korean minimalist – consider this an East-meets-West lesson in the classics.
The new gallery (pictured) is nestled amongst Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade artist enclave, that was christened by Sean Scully last year.
Pictured: Ufan with Ten Days May – June, 2014
'A space with nothing in it is the most beautiful,' says Ufan. 'But,' he adds, 'the metaphorical aspect is lacking and thus somewhat bland.' To address this blandness, Ufan is installing large tableau and two sculptures at the site.
Installation view.
Pictured: Dialogue, 2014
The paintings and sculptures are intended to reinforce Ufan’s existing work, 2014’s House of Air, at the site.
Dialogue, 2014.
Pictured left: Ten Days May – June, 2014. Right: Château la Coste. 2016.
'My artwork gets its live, existential meaning only when it can harmonise with the surrounding space and thus transform the space into a new one,' says Ufan.
While the surrounding French countryside and vineyards did inspire the work, Ufan says his artistic concepts do not fundamentally change as a result of location
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Château La Coste website
ADDRESS
Château La Coste
2750 Route de la Cride
13610 Le Puy Ste Réparade
-
Hella Jongerius’ ‘Angry Animals’ take a humorous and poignant bite out of the climate crisisAt Salon 94 in New York, Hella Jongerius presents animal ceramics, ‘Bead Tables’ and experimental ‘Textile Studies’ – three series that challenge traditional ideas about function, craft, and narrative
-
A photographic study of a family hi-fi store is a vivid portrait of a small businessFashion photographer Nik Hartley looked behind the scenes at Wilkinson’s Hi-Fi, a longstanding part of its Lancashire community.
-
The Contestant: inside the dark and exploitative beginnings of reality TVClair Titley’s The Contestant examines a sensationalist moment in TV history, before Big Brother meant reality became an accepted part of popular culture
-
Architecture, sculpture and materials: female Lithuanian artists are celebrated in NîmesThe Carré d'Art in Nîmes, France, spotlights the work of Aleksandra Kasuba and Marija Olšauskaitė, as part of a nationwide celebration of Lithuanian culture
-
‘Who has not dreamed of seeing what the eye cannot grasp?’: Rencontres d’Arles comes to the south of FranceLes Rencontres d’Arles 2024 presents over 40 exhibitions and nearly 200 artists, and includes the latest iteration of the BMW Art Makers programme
-
Van Gogh Foundation celebrates ten years with a shape-shifting drone display and The Starry NightThe Van Gogh Foundation presents ‘Van Gogh and the Stars’, anchored by La Nuit Etoilée, which explores representations of the night sky, and the 19th-century fascination with the cosmos
-
Marisa Merz’s unseen works at LaM, Lille, have a uniquely feminine spiritMarisa Merz’s retrospective at LaM, Lille, is a rare showcase of her work, pursuing life’s most fragile, transient details
-
Step into Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron's dreamy photographs in London'Portraits to Dream In' is currently on show at London's National Portrait Gallery
-
Damien Hirst takes over Château La CosteDamien Hirst’s ‘The Light That Shines’ at Château La Coste includes new and existing work, and takes over the entire 500-acre estate in Provence
-
Tia-Thuy Nguyen encases Chateau La Coste oak tree in tonne of stainless steel stripsTia-Thuy Nguyen’s ‘Flower of Life’ lives in the grounds of sculpture park and organic winery Château La Coste in France
-
Paris art exhibitions: a guide to exhibitions this weekendAs Emily in Paris fever puts the city of love at the centre of the cultural map, stay-up-to-date with our guide to the best Paris art exhibitions
