Photo credits © Odile Decq, © Odile Decq, Galerie Polaris
After Homéostasie in 2007 and Beyond horizon in 2011, Force en présence is Odile Decq’s third exhibition at the Galerie Polaris.
While the single large sculpture Homéostasie, based on dynamic equilibrium, filled the gallery’s space, and while the installation of black mirrors Beyond horizon took the visitor beyond the limits of inside/outside space, Force en présence changes scale and focuses on the body and its relationship with space.
Odile Decq’s new exhibition, conceived with a minimalist approach, consists in works on wall, floor and ceiling.
Their subject is the spatial representation of the body.
With Test Tube, placed on the floor, the artist wants to show how far she can get regarding the representation of her body.
As a parallel between before and after, the colour red symbolizes the vivid body, while black represents the inert body.
Contrary to the body’s materiality and gravity, Head Bowl invites the visitor to concentrate on one’s « self »: isolated in the work in the middle of his environment, he observes the world that can’t see him.
Between these two antagonisms, body and spirit, it becomes necessary to find a meeting point.
It is on the wall that Odile Decq presents Dynamic Equilibrium, a perspective of the inner ear’s receivers, which are the location of equilibrium.
A perfect control of the minimalist disposition of the works in the gallery’s space emphasizes the mysterious presence of the works.
Is it the architect’s mastery that dictated the layout of the works or is it the works that regulate the immateriality so dear to Odile Decq.
As the artist says: « I remain the guardian of the initial idea », it will be the visitor who will decide of its meaning and functioning.