Thomas Houseago
03 Jul - 23 Oct 2011
THOMAS HOUSEAGO
What Went Down
Curator Chiara Parisi
3 July - 23 October 2011
From July 3rd 2011, the Centre international d’art et du paysage de l’île de Vassivière will host Thomas Houseago’s first monographic exhibition in France. Born in Leeds in 1972, Thomas Houseago lives and works in Los Angeles and is well established in the international art world by his exhibitions at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, at the S.M.A.K in Gent and more recently at the Biennale of the Whitney Museum and at the Punta della dogana as well as at the Palazzo Grassi in Venizia.
On Vassivière Island, Thomas Houseago presents a series of monumental and anthropomorphic figures both in the interior spaces and in the wood of sculptures. Seized by the landscape of Vassivière and with all his energy, the artist displays his work on the entire territory, including a bronze lantern installed in the middle of the lake on the snakes’ island.
Thomas Houseago’s sculptures are made from members made of plates of plaster scribbled with graphite and of heads in traditional materials like wood or bronze. His figures, walking or crawling assume poses that evoke a hypothetical transition between man and animal. Although imposing, monstrous and powerful looking, they also appear fragmented and vulnerable.
What Went Down
Curator Chiara Parisi
3 July - 23 October 2011
From July 3rd 2011, the Centre international d’art et du paysage de l’île de Vassivière will host Thomas Houseago’s first monographic exhibition in France. Born in Leeds in 1972, Thomas Houseago lives and works in Los Angeles and is well established in the international art world by his exhibitions at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, at the S.M.A.K in Gent and more recently at the Biennale of the Whitney Museum and at the Punta della dogana as well as at the Palazzo Grassi in Venizia.
On Vassivière Island, Thomas Houseago presents a series of monumental and anthropomorphic figures both in the interior spaces and in the wood of sculptures. Seized by the landscape of Vassivière and with all his energy, the artist displays his work on the entire territory, including a bronze lantern installed in the middle of the lake on the snakes’ island.
Thomas Houseago’s sculptures are made from members made of plates of plaster scribbled with graphite and of heads in traditional materials like wood or bronze. His figures, walking or crawling assume poses that evoke a hypothetical transition between man and animal. Although imposing, monstrous and powerful looking, they also appear fragmented and vulnerable.