Michaël Pycke
In flux
The Belgian sculptor Michaël Pycke accomplishes a crossover between Art and Biology. Only at first glance do his organic-biomorph structures seem to be affected by the vocabulary of the Classic Modern, and here especially Giacometti’s. In fact, it is biological processes, reactions and metamorphosis, the transition between varying states, that forms the centre of reference for Pycke.
In choosing the representation of an abeyance, that the artist ‘freezes’ in a certain state, he faces a big challenge. However, Pycke so masterly captures the movement that the spectator can easily anticipate the further development of the process that seems to be brought to a halt only for a second. One of his sculptures, for example, shows three figures that stand on a multi-part base. Small spherical creatures pour out of a tiny hole in the base and mount – or as we become aware of – settle on the three figures. Some of these organisms have been living for a longer time on the three figures and have connated with them. This colonization eventually resulted in conic proliferation that sticks out from the body. It becomes apparent that there will be more and more small organisms who settle and that eventually the original figures will be completely transformed. With another sculpture, Little Graveyard, the growing of manifold creatures only seems temporarily interrupted.
Pycke succeeds in translating plastically the transitive when using two contrasting substances: bronze and plaster. He suspends the pathos that emanates from bronze by the pretended instability and fragility of his figures. They lean forward, mostly with the upper part of the body bent down in a way that the head already touches the ground. The ‘eternal’ material seems to decay and break apart as the corpuses do. As for sculptures executed in plaster, Pycke artfully makes use of plaster’s atmospheric possibilities by painting on it to further underline structure and plasticity. The figures’ legs appear more stringy and anaemic, the bodies wrapped in washy shades of haggard blue and the conic proliferation in signal red more menacing. Even where there is no concrete subject, Pyckes’ sculptures and structures have an inherent vitality. They seem to be alive and in a state of constant change.
Born in 1976, Pycke finished his studies of Biotechnology at the University of Ghent in 2004 to then study sculpture at Antwerp’s Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten. In 2007 he was awarded the Loymanns prize in Drawing and mounted his installation “Mysterious Garden’ on Antwerp’s Conscienceplein. He is the winner of the Mark Macken sculpture award in 2008.
Michaël Pycke
in flux
4 décembre 2008 – 24 janvier 2009
vernissage: le 4 décembre, 18-21h
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