François Morellet: Decimated Bands

To occupy Projeto Parede [Wall Project] during the second half of 2016, Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo presents the 3D bandes décimées installation by artist François Morellet, renowned for his participation in kinetic art and deceased on this past May 11 at 90, in Paris. Originally, this Frenchman created this work in two different parts: On one wall, he created a repeated sequence of superimposed lines with a rigorous, calculated mathematics system; on the other wall, those sequences are replicated in an inverted, negative manner, creating random, abstract shapes. At MAM, only the wall with drawings will be presented at the access hall between the public entrance hall and the Museum’s Great Hall from June 20, remaining on show at the space until December 18.

In a video, the artist declared he loved this work for its precision. By accomplishing an improbable pairing, Morellet was able to combine playfulness with rigorous mathematical systems. “By calculating the sequence of lines, I did not imagine the variety of shapes that would be created, which would prompt various thoughts and story creations regarding each one of them by viewers,” the artist said on a video recorded last year when he inaugurated the work on the DASH DASH DASH show gathering new and historic works at the Blain|Southern Gallery in Berlin, Germany.

A prominent name in kinetic art, François Morellet worked with geometric shapes throughout his career. Even though he used many different media and techniques, his interest in lines, grids, and harmony of lines within a space was constant. By utilizing constructivism and mathematical systems, the artist would play with visual expectations where planes and lines are inclined, symmetry is perturbed, and geometry is altered.