ZURICH.- Mai 36 Galerie announced the representation of Magali Reus (*1981, The Hague, NL, lives and works in London, UK).
Magali Reus’s sculptures subtly evoke the forms of everyday machines, appliances, or tools, yet their function and identity remain deliberately ambiguous. She reproduces, layers, and repeats visual elements in meticulously crafted works that involve complex techniques such as casting, moulding, CNC milling, and metalwork, placing the stark uniformity of industrial production in dialogue with the slow precision of craftsmanship.
Oversized or imitative forms and objects might therefore be said to be performing and so linked with conversations of camp, of sexuality or gender. Hovering between handmade and mechanical processes, her practice destabilizes conventional readings of materiality and objecthood. Reus’ recent latest works have a deepened interest in ecology and systems of production, considering the tensions between constructed nature, high technology and the impact of post-industrial human activity. More recently, photography has taken on a greater role in her work, illuminating the research-driven process that underpins her sculptural compositions.
Upcoming and recent solo exhibitions include CAPC Bordeaux, FR; Kunsthalle Wien, AT (both 2027); The Perimeter, London, UK; Kunstverein Freiburg, DE; Museum Beelden Aan Zee, Den Haag, NL (all 2026); Kunstmuseum, Den Haag, NL (2025); ‘Our Volumes’, Museum Kurhaus Kleve, DE’, Off Script’, Museo del Novecento, Milan, IT; (all 2024); ‘Deeper Greens’, Kunsthalle Bratislava, SK; ‘Le Plat Principal’, CAC la Synagogue de Delme, FR; ‘On Like Scenery’, Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens, Deurle, BE (all 2023); ‘XII’, The Approach, London, UK; ‘And Orchard’, François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, USA; ‘A sentence in soil’, Nasher Sculpture Center, Texas, USA; ‘Shadow Tonics’, Galerie Fons Welters, Amsterdam, NL (all 2022).
Reus was awarded the 7th edition of the Arnaldo Pomodoro Sculpture Prize, IT in 2024, shortlisted for the Hepworth Prize for Sculpture, UK 2018, and in 2015 was awarded The Prix de Rome.
Her work is included in international collections including Tate Collection, UK; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, NL; Centraal Museum, Utrecht, NL; Kunstmuseum Den Haag, NL; The Hepworth Wakefield, UK; the Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, USA; Collection CCS Bard Hessel Museum of Art, Annandale-on-Hudson, USA; Kunstmuseum Winterthur, SZ; Kunstmuseum St. Gallen, SZ; Frac Grand Large – Hauts-de- France; Lafayette Anticipation – Fonds de dotation Famille Moulin, Paris, FR; Museum Kurhaus Kleve, DE; LAM Museum, Lisse, NL; Rubell Family Collection, Miami, USA; Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin, IT; Arts Council Collection, UK; Government Art Collection, London, UK; David Roberts Art Foundation, London, UK and The Perimeter, London, UK.
