“ With human hair I’m using living material, to try to understand the relationship we maintain with our environment, including other humans and the planet itself. ”
Isabelle Plat The exhibition A Hair’s Breadth From Usability presents an ensemble of sculptures and drawings by Isabelle Plat originating from hair collected from hairdressing salons.
A treasure of our genetic heritage, for her this material is an “object of belonging”, even closer to people than their clothes, which she equally integrates into her works. This proximity to the human remains strong in her drawings of footprints, even when represented as gigantic, they are treated like membranes corresponding to the interior and exterior points of contact with the body.
The aesthetic shock generated by the work of Isabelle Plat aims to awaken our perceptions of the consequences of individual gestures. In effect, if contemporary society claims to aspire to live in harmony with nature, this relation seems founded on distances and controlled interactions.
In choosing to work with the “object of belonging” as a starting point, Isabelle Plat places her work at the heart of these preoccupations of today’s world. Is the removal of hair from the body not a clue of the rejection of what reminds us that we are animals? Our civilization has tried so hard to dominate nature and to protect itself from nature that it doesn’t know anymore what nature is or its purpose.
The title of the exhibition, A Hair’s Breadth From Usability makes reference to "usable sculpture" a concept developed by the artist many years ago. Beyond their visual dimension, its sculptures offer a second level of interpretation, their usability.
This usability disrupts the perception of the work, engaging the viewer in a gesture that awakens them to themselves. The use of human hair for the creation of these works adds an extra dimension: use of a living material still harbouring an individual’s DNA.
In this vein, the sculpture Brain Carpet of Parisian Hair represents a human organ, created from recycled material. The creative technique brought out in the work by the artist invites the viewer to walk on this symbol of the individual’s thoughts, as if in confrontation with their own grey matter.
GALERIE ERIC MOUCHET
Is dedicated to Contemporary Art in the heart of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
Supported by a high level of quality and expertise, Galerie Eric Mouchet displays an eclectic and demanding programme, under the influence of its founder Eric Mouchet, an expert in graphic arts for the Appeal Court of Paris and a specialist of Le Corbusier’s drawing work.
Collector of international artists of the 70s-80s and young emergent artists, Eric Mouchet made the jump in 2014 to bring together his passion for contemporary art and his expertise while opening his gallery, 45 rue Jacob, Paris 6th.
Located in the historical cultural centre of Paris, Galerie Eric Mouchet shows real individuality and contributes to the opening up Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
ISABELLE PLAT
A HAIR BREADTH FROM USABILITY
5 DECEMBER 2015 - 16 JANUARY 2016
OPENING SATURDAY 5 DECEMBER 2015 FROM 6PM TO 9PM
