21 mètres

Fabrice Gygi (Geneva, 1965)
Donated to the City of Geneva by A&A Real Estate Grand-Pré SA
Collection : Fonds d'art contemporain de la Ville de Genève (FMAC)

From the outset, Fabrice Gygi’s practice has explored the transitory development of public space, as well as the questions of authority and security that arise in our everyday environment. His creations reinterpret these questions through installation and sculptures conceived as functional or communal structures. His formal lexicon and technical vocabulary consist of smooth industrial materials and simple geometric forms. For Rue Chandieu he created a long, wide needle made of corten steel, which has an unclear function and an almost threatening appearance. The pointed sculpture, reaching for the sky from its twenty-one-meter height (the maximum allowed for structures in the district) is reminiscent of a telephone pylon or the relay antennas that are increasingly common in the urban landscape. With its rust color and minimal form, the needlelike pylon also recalls the industrial past of a site that was home to the Sodeco factory before becoming a housing estate and a square with a playground. The artist also took the children into account by rooting his sculpture in a basin that turns into a paddling pool in accordance with the custom.
Article commissioned by P3Art
Notice: Séverine Fromaigeat, translation: Matthew Cunningham

Links:  www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/fmac/index.php
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