'Nubes'

At the centre of Anders Gjennestad's work is the movement of the human body. His prancing figures playfully overcome gravity, extend the urban space to the vertical, and easily conquer inaccessible terrain. They give the viewer the illusion of being in motion, of floating even though they are resting. The long, perspective distorted shadows of the figures lead to a changed perception, the vertical wall appears as a floor surface, as if one could walk on it.

The Norwegian artist Anders Gjennestad was born in Arendal, Norway, in 1980 and lives and works in Oslo and Berlin. He started his career as an artist in 2001 with spray cans. In his work, Gjennestad plays with our perception and with objects found by him, which have their own story. His stencil figures convince on both a small and a large scale by their extremely perfect execution, their detail accuracy and their lifelike depth.

For the new large wall work in the zone contemporaine with the name Nubes, Gjennestad covers the figures with a sprayed and flowing layer of fabric. This glides over the figure, covers the body and lets only its contours become visible. The dance of the people with the flowing textile is an analogy to the clouds, which are constantly in motion, changing their shapes.

Olivier Fahrni | zone contemporaine