Dynamite

KLAT (Geneva, 1997)
Intervention on the occasion of the twenty-second anniversary of l’Usine

L’Usine is a self-managed center assembling numerous associations, concert halls, an exhibition space, a theater, a cinema and various creative workshops. Set up in a former gold refinery, l’Usine quickly became a cult destination for the Genevan population. On the occasion of the twenty-second anniversary of this leading site of alternative culture and Genevan nightlife, the KLAT collective created an art installation on the roof of the building. Visible from far and wide, from the quai du Sujet to the Jonction district, the sculpture incorporates pre-existing architectural elements to create a two-part structure linked by a spiraling pipe. On one side is a detonator, and on the other is a monumental stick of dynamite, the whole piece coated in red paint, standing out on the urban horizon. KLAT’s installation is an allusion to l’Usine’s explosive dimension and its rebellious character. It also highlights the precariousness of a place that is regularly endangered by political powers. KLAT is the name of an artists’ collective founded in 1997. Today it consists of three artists – Jérôme Massard, Florian Saini and Konstantin Sgouridis – who create works that, according to various protocols, insinuate themselves into social or exhibition spaces in order to interfere with their codes or reveal their signs.
Article commissioned by P3Art
Notice: Séverine Fromaigeat, translation: Matthew Cunningham