KUNSTLICHEBEFRUCHTUNG
Jean-Lin Lagarrigue
10. June – 6. July 2024
Vernissage: 10. June 2024, 19:00
In collaboration with
Kudos Gallery
Drahtzugstrasse 67
4057 Basel
Jean-Lin Laggarrigue solo exhibition, Kunstlichebefruchtung, embarks on a profound exploration and redefinition of the textual medium. Through his innovative manipulation of materials and mediums, Jean-Lin Laggarrigue transcends traditional poetic expression, catalyse a multidimensional recontextualization of language.
His practice subverts conventional norms of writing, orthography, and punctuation, inducing cognitive dissonance to foster deeper engagement. This disruption is not mere, aesthetic defiance but a deliberate method to expand the reader’s perceptual perspectives, emphasizing the subjective nature of words.
The title Kunstlichebefruchtung, derived from the German linguistic practice of affixing the “ung” as for the “lich” suffix to verbs to create nouns, merges “Künstliche” (non-natural) and "Befruchtung" (fertilization). Altered by the artist with “Kunst” (art) to “kunstliche” which foreground “Kunstlichebefruchtung”.
The exhibition features a progression from handwriting to complex assemblage on wooden panel and imprint from rust. Each piece undergoes a transformative journey—torn, manipulated—imbuing the material with a temporal and tactile narrative. This process preserves the material's origin. Contrasting with the nature of traditional written materials. The handwritten ink on surfaces serves as an indelible record, infusing the work with palpable immediacy. By eschewing conventional editing and publication processes, he foregrounds the raw, unmediated interaction with language. This approach resists the depersonalization inherent in printed texts, maintaining the expressiveness and individuality of the handwritten word.
Found objects, particularly those encountered in urban environments, are incorporated into his work, serving as repositories of identified essence and narrative potential. These objects, transformed through the artist’s intervention, become active participants in the artwork, embodying the intersection of text, place and time.
The title alludes to the artist’s process of enduing his materials with new significance. The act of inscribing ink on rusted paper, for instance, symbolizes the dichotomy of permanence and decay, capturing the transient yet enduring nature of written expression.
The show culminates in an interactive performance accompanied by live piano music from Eero Schoch.
The exhibition curated by Wiktoria Tundys, taking place in the KUDOS Gallery, hosted by KUDOS × Büro International, presents a compelling exploration of how language, materiality and artistic intervention intersect to create a dynamic and immersive narrative landscape.