A large pencil drawing executed directly on the wall surface sets out the principles governing the structure and assembly of a series of sculptures that define and structure the exhibition space. Lines intersect or stand aloof in parallel, describing the arrangement of seven brightly-coloured volumes which punctuate the setting, inviting the viewer to explore their forms along myriad potential pathways.
The steel forms, spray-painted in an industrial bodyshop, assume complex geometrical shapes with sharp or eroded points. Katarzyna Série is inspired by Constructivist works produced in the interwar years by the Russian sculptor Katarzyna Kobro. The series also evokes the radical Minimalism of American artists such as Donald Judd, or Ellsworth Kelly.
Marking a clear break with his earlier, modular structures, the new series eschews monumental excess with a focus on clean-cut, brightly-coloured shapes defining a new spatial configuration. Miracles of poise and balance, Jean-Gabriel Coignet's rigourously simplified forms convey a sense of sustained, serene delight.
