ABSUM

For Fabrice Gygi, being an artist can be a way of granting oneself the right to be absent. The title Absum plays on the Latin notion of “not being there”. While society requires us to be constantly present, the act of voluntarily erasing ourselves could be the most profound expression of freedom. The two works presented here, Podium (1997) and Display Cases (2021), are sculptures as much as they are empty spaces.

Fabrice Gygi was born in Geneva in 1965. A polymorphous artist, his work takes the form of engravings, sculptures, installations, performances, public commissions and paintings. He has had exhibitions at several international institutions, including the MAMCO, the Kunstmuseum St.Gallen and the Swiss Institute in New York. He represented Switzerland at the 53rd Venice Biennale, and his work can be found in many public collections.