Pipilotti Rist: Prickling Goosebumps & a Humming Horizon
© Pipilotti Rist / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, Courtesy the artist, Hauser & Wirth and Luhring Augustine, Big Heartedness, Be MyNeighbor, The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, 2021 - 2022, Photo: Zak Kelley
Written and Photo Edited by Joe Cuccio
This major two-part exhibition by Pipilotti Rist does justice to her self-proclaimed “wild and friendly” aesthetic. Rist is a master of exploring the privilege of being a human and deeply unpacking the endless possibilities the psyche can provide. In this two-fold exhibition, she dives into the interior and exterior spaces humans may find themselves in. Rist is interested in exploring how these spaces are physically and psychologically present in our existence. She deploys sculptural works in conversation with projections to give visitors a multisensory experience.
One portion of the exhibition is located at Luhring Augustine Chelsea on West 24th Street, covering the exterior space with pieces throughout the gallery that create a comprehensive backyard environment full of colors, sounds, and textures. The main gallery space consists mostly of one large facade of a clapboard house entitled ‘Neighbors Without Fences’ (2020), and scattered about this space are outdoor patio furniture and a massive boulder with vibrant projections across its surface. This exterior space Rist has built allows viewers to engage with the psychological impact of the work. The video projections are slightly off-kilter, provoking a sense of awe towards exteriors in an urban environment. Within the windows found among the large facade of the house are specially made video projections for this installation. These projections are aligned with Rist’s use of color to invoke an emotional experience in the viewers. The way the fusion of colors like vibrant blues, pinks, and purples moves about this confined window silhouette is fascinating. Rist allows for these color fields to pose a point of reflection, forcing viewers to consider what these playful colors represent when considering Rist’s attention to the collective understanding of the human psyche.
© Pipilotti Rist / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, Courtesy the artist
Het leven verspillen aan jou<Wasting Life On You (in a positive sense)>, 2021, permanent video installation, Het Depot Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Photo: Studio Klaud & Studio Rist
The second piece of the exhibition is located at Hauser & Wirth’s West 22nd Street building, where Rist transforms this gallery space into a living room full of lively reds and greens. Her domestic scene has the looks of a modern home, and the way she uses multiple artistic modes of expression all for this space to be transformed into something that matches her artistic intentions. She uses domestic objects like clothes, beds, and tables and elevates them to a place of great artistic intention through her use of colorfields, lights, and projections. Her fascination with light shines through all the pieces, adding a dynamic element that magnetizes visitors to the space. Interactive play is encouraged. Existing in the space is part of the experience.
© Pipilotti Rist / ARS, New York, Courtesy the artist, Hauser & Wirth and Luhring Augustine, Photo: Thomas Barrat
Installation view, ‘Pipilotti Rist. Prickling Goosebumps & A Humming Horizon,’ Hauser & Wirth New York 22nd Street, 9 November 2023 – 13 January 2024
Rist’s multisensory approach to making artwork has onlookers in awe at her incredible mind. There is so much to take in and it all is in service of playfully reconstructing our engagement with the world we inhabit. Her attention to color, light, space, and objects all tie together to create a unique experience for guests to engage with. This is an exhibition one will find themselves getting lost within, not because it is confusing, but rather because there is a multitude of things to see. Somewhere within the playful exhibition of colors and lights, there is a space for contemplation to occur. Rist continues her lineage of creating pieces that are inspired by the power of vulnerability, making works that require time and consideration to be fully understood.
© Pipilotti Rist / ARS, New York, Courtesy the artist, Hauser & Wirth and Luhring Augustine, Photo: Thomas Barrat
Installation view, ‘Pipilotti Rist. Prickling Goosebumps & A Humming Horizon,’ Hauser & Wirth New York 22nd Street, 9 November 2023 – 13 January 2024
