Peter Fischli
Cans, Bags & Boxes
November 29, 2017 - January 20, 2018
This exhibition, Peter Fischli’s first at the gallery, consists of 41 sculptures and 2 lithographic prints.
All sculptures were made between 2016 and 2017. The smallest of these measures 10 cm X 10 cm X 12 cm and the largest is 42 cm X 55 cm X 60 cm. The tallest sculpture is 142 cm high. The pedestals range in size from 25 cm X 25 cm X 30 cm to 80 cm X 80 cm X 100 cm.
All sculptures and pedestals are made of cardboard, then concealed with newspaper (Neue Zürcher Zeitung 1914, Neue Presse 1967/68, Migros Zeitung 2016/17) and construction paper. All sculptures are untitled, although some have “studio titles“ or nicknames.
Two different types of glue have been used: wallpaper glue and white wood glue. All sculptures and pedestals have been painted first with a mixture of indoor emulsion paint and champagne chalk. Additional layers of color were applied using acrylic, silicate paint, gouache or enamel, and in this way a variety of surface effects, patinas and sculptural looks have been achieved. The sculptures were produced with the assistance of Bernhard Hegglin. The pedestals were created and executed with the help of Jason Klimatsas.
Some of the sculptures are based on a memory of artworks made for a movie shot in Los Angeles in 1981. One could say: the better the prop, the closer we come to the real possibility of sculpture. And: the more convincing the sculpture, the more successful the little miracle of making an artist appear too.
The two prints are based on a detail of a jungle-themed watercolor made by Peter Fischli at age 11.