Selected Furniture Sculptures 1979-2012. The exhibition features highlights of an open chapter in the Swiss artist's oeuvre, showcasing the breadth and vision of the furniture sculptures from 1979 to the present.
Swiss Institute proudly presents Selected Furniture Sculptures 1979–2012, the first New York solo
show of John Armleder in eight years. The exhibition will feature highlights of an open chapter in the
Swiss artist’s oeuvre, showcasing the breadth and vision of the furniture sculptures from 1979 to the
present.
The exhibition is curated by Swiss Institute Director Gianni Jetzer in close collaboration with the artist
and consists of both historical and new works as well as two restitutions of historical pieces reported
as missing. Several works in the exhibition were initially produced in the 1980s on the occasion of
Armleder’s solo shows at John Gibson Gallery on 568 Broadway, thus retracing the artist's exhibition
history in New York.
Selected Furniture Sculptures 1979–2012 will feature a dramatic, non-chronological layout that
draws from Armleder’s interest in affirming the medium of painting yet extending the act to the realm
of the everyday, where the happy or not-so-happy fate of many paintings is to be integrated into a
domestic environment, more often than not close to the odd sofa, armchair, or chest. Armleder simply
anticipates this, providing the furniture together with the painting, eventually provoking a completely
new reading of the canvas in a domestic environment.
Furniture sculptures are typically comprised of both large and small-scale paintings paired with
antique furniture or else new goods such as truck spoilers, musical instruments, surfboards, or
lighting fixtures. These pairings often inspire a specific élan, one that toys with the idea of painting as
a mere object while affirming its ongoing virulence.
Swiss Institute thanks LUMA Foundation, Fonds municipal d’art contemporain (FMAC) Genève, and
the République et canton de Genève for their support for this exhibition.
For more information, please email Piper Marshall: piper@swissinstitute.net
Opening reception: Wednesday, September 12, 6 to 8PM
Swiss Institute
18 Wooster St New York
Opening hours: Wednesday to Sunday, noon to 6PM