joana vasconcelos invades le bon marché with monumental embroidered creature ‘simone’

portuguese artist joana vasconcelos has taken over le bon marché with ‘simone’, a two-part monumental airborne creature composed of handmade woolen crochet, fabrics, ornaments, inflatables and LED. titled branco luz, the exhibition takes place from 17 january to 24 march, displaying the otherworldly, white-hued piece beneath the parisian department store’s central skylight and in the window displays.

all images courtesy of joana vasconcelos

a reference to two french activist female figures – simone de beauvoir and simone weil – the piece comes to join joana vasconcelos‘ valkyries series, which she has been creating since she was 15 years old. part of nordic mythology, the powerful goddesses are reinterpreted in vasconcelos’ work through inflatable pieces layered in a variety of fabrics and embroidery. the dramatically-proportioned creature suspended from the central skylights of le bon marché wraps around the store’s escalators and blends into the space, adding a baroque element typical of the artist’s work.

project info:

exhibition name: branco luz

artwork name: simone

artist: joana vasconcelos

material: handmade woolen crochet, fabric, ornaments, LED, polyester, inflatable, fans, microcontrollers, power supply unit, steel cables

size: 965 x 1220 x 3051 cm

location: le bon marché

duration: 17 january to 24 march 2019