Sophie de Saint Phalle (Perpetua1010) has recently opened two exhibitions of her work, each of which is also set to words offering both insight and description.
The first, which opened on February 13th at Sophie’s own Subcutan Art Gallery, where it occupies an atmospheric skybox exhibition space. It is entitled Infernal Symbiosis, and perhaps the best way to describe it is a celebration of the meeting of self and nature, and the ability of the latter to remove the noise, the insistent pressure the demons of modern life, and to remind us of our heritage and our being a part of Nature and the world around use.
The watercolours were created at the edge of flow— in the forest, beside a narrow creek. Water becomes body; body becomes landscape. Nature and human dissolve their borders and remember their shared origin.
– Sophie de Saint Phalle, Internal Symbiosis
In the darkness of the gallery space, the vibrancy of the 14 abstract paintings is perfectly brought to life, the fluid lines and flowing colours giving a sense of both motion to what are essentially still life images, together with a sense of water-like fluidity. Together they give us a beautiful sense of harmonious intermingling of our humanity and Nature.
In this, it is – to me at least – vital to take in the ambience of the gallery space as a whole; within Subcutan, Sophie always takes care to offer her art in terms of an immersive environment, where setting, art and EEP all combine to form an experience to be explored and appreciated. This is very much the case here, the outer lobby of the main hall and the scenes visible through the windows adding creative depth and feeling to the exhibition as a whole.
Sophie’s second current – at the time of writing – exhibition opened on February 19th at ArtCare Gallery, curated and operated by Carelyna. Again occupying a sky-base exhibition space is Yellow Impressions.
It offers some 13 nude images presented as marble etchings, all of which carry a similar theme of symbiosis and joining – or perhaps understanding might be a better term, as Sophie notes in the text accompanying the exhibition.
As myself became intertwined with the soul structures of others, surface turned into tangible life. In this transition — between inner perception and outward appearance —an image-skin emerges that does not depict, but carries.
– Sophie de Saint Phalle, Yellow Impressions
That the nudes are what might be termed partial studies – and indeed possibly familiar to followers of Sophie’s work – matters not. Again, as Sophie notes, reduction of the body, the absence of features (e.g. head, or facial features) and focus on specific elements of the human body (e.g. the torso),becomes a method of approach, a means to express the idea of both self and our perception of others becoming intertwined; an energy flow if you will, of a subconscious yet perceptual openness – or perhaps offering – of one to another.
Taken together or individually, Infernal Symbiosis and Yellow Expressions are both shirking and visually engaging, whilst the words accompanying them (touch the exhibition title boards in each case to receive these), allow us to thread the path of the deeper expression and meaning within both.
Highly recommended.
SLurl Details
- Infernal Symbiosis, (Subcutan Art Gallery, rated Adult)
- Yellow Expressions (ArtCare Gallery, Emotion, rated Moderate)
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