Artist's Talk: Artist David Altmejd

⁣DAVID ALTMEJD FLUX @ Mudam Luxembourg - Musée d'Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean “In the space between science fiction and reality, between fantastic zoology and scientific creativity, David Altmejd accomplishes the feat of uniting the colourful magic of material, the endless fantasy of forms and the poetry of ancient artistic
skills in one and the same melting pot.” (Louise Déry) In a career spanning
nearly twenty years, the Canadian sculptor David Altmejd has produced a wide
variety of formally and thematically complex works in surprisingly diverse
materials. The artist’s interest in biology and architecture combines with a
fascination with metamorphosis to produce compellingly strange images
reminiscent of the dreamlike or nightmarish worlds of David Cronenberg and
David Lynch, or the labyrinthine narratives of Jorge Luis Borges. Altmejd’s
works are characterised by a wealth of detail that lends formal momentum to
individual elements, which in some instances seems to originate from within the
elements themselves. Animated by inner forces and radiating a taut sense of
energy, they are like snapshots of single moments within a continual process of
evolution. The natural forces illustrated in his sculptures are counterbalanced
by currents of energy (as epitomised by the gold chains in The Index).
Altmejd’s works unfold a disturbingly ambiguous narrative: even as they
challenge viewers with unanswered questions, the sculptures validate their
feelings and interpretations. From the beginning of his career as an artist,
Altmejd has been using a wide variety of forms and materials in his sculptures.
The werewolf, a prominent motif in his work, appeared early on, whether in the
shape of individual heads or as complex presentations on pedestals. Epoxy clay,
crystals, plexiglass and mirrors are recurring materials in his work. The heads
presented in this exhibition, from the years 2006 to 2015, convey Altmejd’s
central concern with the inherent tension in the work, the potential energy it
generates, and the possibility of releasing that energy. The Builders (2005);
The Outside, The Inside and The Praying Mantis (2005); and The Trail (2006) are
developments of earlier table-like pedestals. As model-type architectures, they
constitute a mixture of independent microcosms and set-ups for scientific
presentation. Upon closer examination, these works, which at first glance seem
to be structured in an architectonic, rational manner, turn out to be rampant
geometric growths and surreal labyrinths with organic, exotic elements. Altmejd
overcame the horizontality of these presentation structures with a series of
giant, vertical figures; although the figures are enormous in scale, Altmejd
worked meticulously on each section and component independently, rather than in
the context of the massive whole. With their hermetically block-like,
classically inspired, or open, deconstructed character, these colossal statues
inhabiting the museum’s Grand Hall, like animated “landscapes” or as completely
mirror-clad forms, trigger associations with golems and cyborgs. They are
complemented by the series Bodybuilders, plaster figures which seem to embody
their own production process. The artist’s more recent plexiglass works provide
a spatial framework for his sculptural compositions, restraining them within a
transparent cover while at the same time allowing glimpses into their inner
coherencies. In Le Guide (2010) and Le Souffle et la Voie (2010), the focus is
on a symmetrically structured representation of inner energy currents; in
sculptures such as The Orbit (2012), architectonic elements, mirrors, fruits
and anatomical fragments again enhance the complexity of the works. For
Altmejd, the dynamic movement in these pieces, which repeatedly breaks through
the inner and sometimes even outer (plexiglass) boundaries, is a sign of
powerful vital energy. David Altmejd was born in Montreal in 1974. He lives and
works in New York. Curator: Marie-Noëlle Farcy Exhibition organised in
collaboration with: Musée d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal In partnership with: Ambassade du Canada au Luxembourg



Artist's Talk: David Altmejd
⁣Copyright ⓒ Mudam Luxembourg Museum
License: Creative Commons Attribution license (reuse allowed)
Thumbnail Photo Copyright David Altmejd, VSA Digital Design.
All artworks shown in this video is under Copyright David Altmejd or Representative Agent/Gallery