olafur eliasson: your chance encounter

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 at the museum of contemporary art, kanazawaall images © studio olafur eliasson, 2009

eliasson works to dematerialize the traditional object-hood 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