ART-REVIEW:Kapwani Kiwanga-Surface Tensions

The French-Canadian artist Kapwani Kiwanga in her solo exhibition “Surface Tensions” at Galerie Jérôme Poggi presents works that have never been exhibited on France before. Through these works the artist questions the notion of control through materials conditioning not only the look but also the movement. On account of the fact that Kapwani Kiwanga at first studied anthropology and comparative religion at McGill University in Montreal and later she followed the program “La Seine” at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris, the way she manages the concepts in sculptures,  that at first look like strict, tough and monotonous- Kiwanga removes from her works every decorative element, every kind of impress, using either media that puzzles us or very familiar like the mirror- the messages and stimuli that the viewer gets through a personal tour are very different of the initial impressions. The feelings that arise even from the polygonal sculpture with the mirrors, which occupies a prominent place in the gallery space, exceed the narrow limits of narcissistic mirroring, is the opposite, since it is more like a satellite that carries inner messages or a bridge that urges us to unite with the deeper self. The “Surface Tensions” series is like an inner journey that begins through art, but Kapwani Kiwanga gives the viewer personal freedom for the road to follow… looks like personal introspection(!)-Efi Michalarou

Info: Galerie Jérôme Poggi, 2 Rue Beaubourg, Paris, Duration: 16/6-28/7/18, Days & Hours: Tue-Sat 11:00-19:00, http://galeriepoggi.com