colour shadow theatre, 2009

danish-icelandic artist olafur eliasson's 'your chance encounter', is a large solo exhibition
of his work on show at the 21st century museum of contemporary art, kanazawa, japan.

for this project, eliasson explored and understood the architecture and functionality of the space,
which was designed by SANAA, in order to make his work relevant within the museum walls.
his installations, bring the institution to life, engaging and transforming the rooms and corridors
through his use of light, mirrors, shadow, color, wind and fog.


colour shadow theatre, 2009

eliasson works to dematerialize the traditional objecthood in art.
'...to emphasize that it can be important to blur the boundaries between the traditional art object
and space.' he aims at bringing forth the importance of the 'user' of art / spectator in the museum.
there is a degree of the mundane in his works. in this way, he wants to make his art accessible
and interactive, creating a dialogue and relationship between his work and the viewer.
with this exhibition, eliasson re-proposes the idea of the art museum, to be seen not just simply
as a facility in which to view art in a context which is removed from society,
but more as a public space, with the potential to engage society and the urban environment.
a space in which to question our presence within this world.

the exhibition is on show until march 22nd, 2010.


'slow-motion shadow in colour', 2009
HMI lamps, colour-effect filter glass (blue, green, magenta, orange, red, yellow)


you're making things explicit, 2009


your water colour horizon, 2009
rubber, stainless steel, steel, wood, water glass prism, HMI lamp
dimensions variable


'your atmospheric colour atlas', 2009


eye activity line, 2009
317 canvases of different colors are installed along the corridor, creating a kind of meandering layout
and utilizing transitional spaces within the museum as 'gallery' areas


your black horizon, 2005


your black horizon, 2005
all images © studio olafur eliasson, 2009

olafur eliasson was born in copenhagen in 1967.
he studied at the royal danish academy of fine arts in copenhagen.
he has exhibited at such international institutions as the hara museum of contemporary,
tokyo, the tate modern, london and the museum of modern art, new york.
in 2003, he represented denmark at the 50th venice art biennale with his installation
'the blind pavilion'.
he currently lives and work sin copenhagen and berlin.