The first solo exhibition by Guillaume Bruère in Switzerland takes place from 24 May to 8 September 2019. The French artist is an obsessive draughtsman who draws inspiration from masterpieces of art history but also portrays people who do not normally find themselves in the limelight. In recent years he has been a frequent visitor to the Kunsthaus Zürich and the Schauspielhaus. The Kunsthaus is presenting more than 50 works created between 2012 and 2018.
French artist Guillaume Bruère (b. 1976) works at great speed, creating multiple works of energetically vigorous draughtsmanship in a short space of time. He prefers to draw on site in museums, working from the paintings of Old Masters at locations including the Louvre, the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin and, on many occasions, the Kunsthaus Zürich.
The human face and the portrait play a central role in Bruère’s work. He has produced new, large-format portraits of gallery attendants from the Kunsthaus specially for the exhibition, turning the spotlight on people who play a vital role in the museum’s operations but, as individuals, mostly remain in the background. The drawings were made last year as part of public sessions during the Open Day and Museums at Night in Zurich.
DRAWING IN THE KUNSTHAUS AND SCHAUSPIELHAUS
While at the Kunsthaus Bruère has created over 200 drawings, no fewer than 38 of which are based on the self-portrait by van Gogh. He has also been a guest of the Schauspielhaus Zürich and has sketched during rehearsals for productions such as the ‘Princess of Burgundy’. The exhibition presents for the first time a selection from these two groups of Zurich-based works.
MEET THE ARTIST – THE FRINGE PROGRAMME
Guillaume Bruère lives and works in Berlin. He studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Nantes and the École européenne supérieure de l’image in Poitiers and works as a painter, draughtsman, performer and sculptor. At the start of the year he received the 2019 advancement award from the Conrad Ferdinand Meyer Foundation. Three events will offer a chance to meet the artist in person: a drawing performance takes place at 7 p.m. on 24 May, while at 11 a.m. on 8 June Barbara Frey, Director of the Schauspielhaus Zürich, Bice Curiger, Director of the Fondation Vincent van Gogh, Arles, and Mirjam Varadinis, curator of the exhibition, will be talking to Guillaume Bruère about his work, his intentions as an artist and his special relationship with Zurich. Finally at 2 p.m. on 25 August, the artist will be staging a public performance next to the Henry Moore sculpture on Zurich’s lakeside promenade.
A COMPACT VISUAL EXPERIENCE TO ENJOY AT HOME:
PUBLICATION AND LITHOGRAPH
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue comprising more than 400 pages. It includes all the drawings made over recent years at the Kunsthaus and Schauspielhaus. Guillaume Bruère has written texts for this big ‘picture book’ offering an introduction to the various groups of works. It is available from the Kunsthaus shop and bookstores, price CHF 48. Guillaume Bruère has also created his first ever lithograph for the exhibition. This limited-edition work can be purchased from the Kunsthaus shop, price CHF 800.
ARTIST QUOTES
“Giacometti interests me – that’s where my artistic life began.”
“When choosing which work of art in the Kunsthaus I will draw, I act intuitively. Like an animal going hunting, I run through the museum halls and when I have decided which painting I will draw, I sit and use a drawing table to complete my work.”
“Humanity is an important aspect in my artistic practice- ideally every human being should have his or her own drawing.”
“If I draw on coloured paper, it’s like a musical instrument which needs to be tuned again.”
“Three of my large scale works of this exhibition feature security employees from the Kunsthaus: I want to put inconspicuous persons centre stage.”
“Barbara Frey’s dance performances have inspired me.”
PRESS CONFERENCE CAPTIONS
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