Hypothesis exhibition by Philippe Parreno at HangarBicocca, Milan – Italy
posted by retail design blog on 2016-02-14
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Upon entering Milan’s HangarBicocca, visitors are immersed into an orchestrated sound and light experience. Funded and managed by Pirelli, the space for contemporary art hosts a follow up of Philippe Parreno’s New York show, Hypothesis. The first survey exhibition in Italy of Parreno emerges from the French artist envisioning the ‘exhibition space also a production space’. Parreno infills the industrial building with a series of his key pieces, accompanied by atmospheric music.
More than a thousand square meters of Kvadrat’s Stoplight Color 3 rise up to the ceiling of the gigantic space to cover an entire side wall. The fabric panels function as an expansive screen upon which shadows are cast by Parreno’s iconic light sculptures, or Marquees. In the words of curator Andrea Lissoni, the shaded forms ‘become cinematic’ as they slowly drift by. Playing a leading role in the exhibition, the work entitled Another Day with Another Sun was created by the Frenchman in collaboration with the Danish textile brand.
The show will be perceived differently by everyone that steps foot inside. Although the overall experience is looped, certain elements are influenced by external factors. Fragmented sound-bites consist of picked up radio frequencies and ambient noises recorded outside, catching certain moments when a train passes by.
A striking feature is a manga-like avatar figure that seems to appear out of nowhere. ‘I don’t belong to anyone, I’m an imaginary character, I’m no ghost,’ are some of the phrases she spews, after which she disappears again, leaving guests baffled to say the least. It’s not the only video work featured in the exhibition, but due to its striking colours, sudden presence and thought-provoking messages, certainly become a highlight.
Hypothesis is currently on show at Milan’s HangarBicocca until 14 February 2016.
Photos Andrea Rossetti, courtesy of the Artist; Pilar Corrias Gallery; Gladstone Gallery; Esther Schipper; Fondazione HangarBicocca, Milan
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