Trame & tram

Silvie Defraoui (Sankt-Gallen, 1935)
Collection : Fonds cantonal d'art contemporain (FCAC), art&tram project

For the art&tram public art project, artist Silvie Defraoui created a work that spreads across three tram stops, unfolding like a film sequence that only traveling passengers can appreciate in its continuous movement. Geometric shapes are drawn on the asphalt ground like traceries of lines, like a network of abstract motifs. Produced with the same paint used for road markings, they make up a maze that offers the eyes a moment of escape and a place to rest amid the multitude of visual stimuli that capture our attention. Silvie Defraoui’s drawings are counterpoints to pedestrian crossings, to the white lines that regulate traffic, and to other road signs, fostering a sense of calm and offering a functionless ornament instead of the injunctions of signage. A pioneer of video art alongside her husband Chérif, Silvie Defraoui explores the status of images, their limitations and power. Her teaching at the École supérieure des arts visuels (school of fine arts) in Geneva contributed to training several generations of artists, and has had a decisive effect on the vibrant Genevan art scene.
Article commissioned by P3Art
Notice: Séverine Fromaigeat, translation: Matthew Cunningham

Links: www.art-et-tram.ch
www.p3art.ch