PRESS RELEASE Competition for Artistic Intervention on State Buildings
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PRESS RELEASE Competition for Artistic Intervention on State Buildings The "Crocodile", a legendary swiss locomotive brought back to life by Olivier Mosset and Xavier Veilhan In the competition for artistic intervention on the state buildings of PLATEFORME 10, the jury awarded the prize to the artists Olivier Mosset (CH) and Xavier Veilhan (F) for their "Crocodile" project, a monumental painted metal sculpture inspired by the legendary locomotive The jury members were attracted by the iconic aspect of the proposal and its strong connection to the history of the site. The work will be produced to accompany the gradual opening of PLATEFORME 10 from 2019. "Crocodile" will be moved around the site to follow the progress of the project and the opening of the Musée Cantonal des Beaux-Arts (mcb-a), then the building that will house the Musée de l’Elysée and the mudac. The ten jury members met for two days and examined 16 projects for the selective tender competition for the production of an artistic intervention on the PLATEFORME 10 site. With a budget of 567'000 francs (for the competition organisation and the production of the artistic intervention), the competition was overseen by the State of Vaud department of buildings, heritage and logistics (SIPaL). Following its deliberations, the almost unanimous jury named the "Crocodile" project, by artists Olivier Mosset and Xavier Veilhan, a monumental painted metal sculpture inspired directly by the iconic appearance of the locomotive "Ce 6/8II", nicknamed "Crocodile" for its distinctive shape and color. The sculpture was the result of the combined efforts of the two artists who had never worked together before. When they discovered that they had both been chosen to take part in the competition, they decided to join forces to propose a single project based on a hybrid version of each of their formal vocabularies and a common interest in mechanical objects. The balance between art and architecture and between a reminder of the industrial era and an animal that is both familiar and almost prehistoric makes the sculpture iconic. To reinforce its expressive power, the artists propose to make it on a 1-to-1 scale in cast aluminium and sheet metalwork, painted in a dark green satin finish. PLATEFORME 10 Canton de Vaud T + 41 21 316 30 52 Département formation, F + 41 21 316 30 41 jeunesse et culture [email protected] Rue de la Barre 8, 1014 Lausanne www.plateforme10.ch When completed, "Crocodile" will be 18 metres long and will weigh approximately 5 tonnes. Placed on the ground with no attachment point, the sculpture may be moved during the different construction phases. The jury was aware of the quality of the collaboration between these two internationally-known artists in keeping with the PLATEFORME 10 spirit: individual artistic practice is given a new interpretation for the purposes of an ambitious joint project. Lausanne, May 10 2017 Additional information: DFIRE, Pascal Broulis, State council in charge of constructions, +41 (0)21 316 20 00 DFJC, Anne-Catherine Lyon, State council in charge of culture, +41 (0)21 316 30 01 Emmanuel Ventura, Cantonal architect and president of the jury, +41 (0)79 332 40 00 Xavier Veilhan, artist, + 33 1 43 48 44 41 Practical information: Le projet lauréat sera visible et accessible au public sur le site de PLATEFORME 10 les jeudi 11, vendredi 12 et samedi 13 mai de 11h à 17h. Press images and the jury's report: https://we.tl/icvdQ7Zr8f Page 2 Olivier Mosset and Xavier Veilhan, "Crocodile", aluminium, 17,6 x 3,4 x 3,7 metres (simulation) Image © Vincent Germond Olivier Mosset and Xavier Veilhan,"Crocodile" Fulgurex Crocodile Ce 6/8 SBB (simulation) Image © Vincent Germond Olivier Mosset et Xavier Veilhan © Diane Arques / 2017, ProLitteris, Zurich Page 3 Artists' Biographies A major figure of the French art scene, Xavier Veilhan (born in 1963, currently living and working in Paris), studied in Paris and in Berlin. Since the mid-1980s he has created an acclaimed body of works (sculpture, painting, installation, performance, video and photography) nourrished by his interest in both the vocabulary of modernity and classical statuary. His work pays tribute to the inventions and inventors of modernity, through a formal artistic language that mixes the codes of both industry and art. He has a long-standing interest in the often- evolving exhibition space in which the visitor becomes an actor. In 2009, he set up his exhibition in the Palace and gardens of Versailles and between 2012 and 2014, he developed a series of interventions in seven major modernist buildings around the world. His interest for architecture was taken to a new level in 2014 when he designed the château de Rentilly. In 2015, he directed two films that extend these spatial explorations: "Vent Moderne" and "Matching Numbers". A regular when it comes to projects in the public space, Xavier Veilhan has installed sculptures in various cities in France (Bordeaux, Tours, Lyon) as well as abroad (New York, Shanghai, Séoul). Olivier Mosset (born in Bern in 1944, lives and works in Tucson, Arizona) was associated with Daniel Buren, Niele Toroni and Michel Parmentier for a brief period. The four artists publicly expressed their desire to break with institutional structures and recognised artistic models. In 1967, Olivier Mosset created several paintings featuring the same black circle on a white ground at the centre of a 1 x 1 metre square. Between 1966 and 1974, he produced about two hundred paintings of circles. The relationships that he created among shades of colour from 1976 progressively led him towards monochrome painting. In 1978, he met Marcia Hafif, with whom he established an artist’s group. Although he never belonged to the "Néo-Géo" movement, Olivier Mosset maintained relations with Peter Halley, Helmut Federle and John Armleder. In 1990, he exhibited in the Swiss Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. He has collaborated on numerous occasions with such diverse artists as Andy Warhol, Steven Parrino, John Armleder or Cady Noland. Olivier Mosset has also produced on-site art and open-air sculptures and designed in 1994 an installation made of cardboard that echoed – life-size – the shape of the anti-tank barriers familiarly called "Toblerones" by the Swiss during the Second World War. In 2003, Oliver Mosset presented a two-fold retrospective at the Museum of Fine Art in Lausanne and at the Art Museum St. Gallen. Page 4.