The Element of Line
An exhibition at Hauser & Wirth titled LINES explores a group of international artists active between the 1950s and today, united by one element. The use of the line.
The exhibition examines how these artists have introduced new meaning to Formalism by finding new uses for geometric forms, which continuously challenge the limits of abstract art. LINES brings together artists that have approached the subject of line working in different contexts and regions and, in many cases, without knowledge of each other.
Works on paper play an important role in the exhibition, as lines have always been a central element in drawing. The 1970s works on paper by Brazilian Ivens Machado are a thorough examination of the highly politically charged space of the notebook. Colombian artist Johanna Calle operates with a different logic, expanding the possibilities of the grid by distorting, softening and eroding it. Calle’s work could be situated between the purist calculation of the architects and the actual experience of those who live in the city.
A film by Romanian artist Geta Brătescu shows the artist’s hands playing in front of the camera. In a work that brings together drawing, performance and cinematic narrative, Brătescu evokes manual activity as a condition of the artwork, also suggesting that the relationship between the artwork and the body is stressed.
LINES is on display at Hauser & Wirth, Zürich, Switzerland until Saturday 31 May 2014.
—
