PARIS.- From June 19 to July 15, the Centre Pompidou presents one part of Loris Gréaud’s two-venue project, [I]. The artist has specially designed this monumental, performance-related sculpture for the Forum of the Centre Pompidou, where it is on show, free of charge, for four weeks.

“I’ve always wanted to move away from the classical format of exhibitions, (…). That may have been what aroused my interest in a poetical wave of proposals and experiences spreading like noise, or like a murmur, from one city to another. To displayworks all round the world is a way of covering one’s tracks and blurring any reference to time and space (…) the idea of exhibiting two works simultaneously in these two highly prestigious institutions held a very special appeal to me: visitors are invited to go from one exhibition to the other and dwell on what it is that brings them together.”

The name of the exhibition, [I], covers both works; it is not a word to be uttered, but a sign. At first glance, it evokes I, the first person singular pronoun in English, but in mathematics, [I] is the imaginary unit in the theory of complex numbers. Like an axiom, it is a unit that can be used to solve many different equations starting from a single established element of data. With [I], Loris Gréaud has created a new narrative mode, that of a solitary work which is constantly regenerated by the energy it gives off. [I] is not a finite object, but a representation of the relentless passing of time and the eternal return.

A leading figure on the international art scene since the mid-2000’s, Loris Gréaud keeps challenging the notion of exhibitions, how works of art function and how they exist over time. After Devils Tower (2006), a sculpture which he took all over Europe, ending at the Centre Pompidou, close to the venue of his latest installation, Loris Gréaud went on to create Cellar Door, a fictional work about the construction of his own workshop. After the ICA London, the Kunsthalle Sankt Gallen, the Conservera Murcia, and the Kunsthalle Wien, Cellar Door was finally exhibited at the Palais de Tokyo in 2008. More recently, he released a film, The Snorks - A Concert for Creatures, in which he composes a symphony for deep sea creatures whose bioluminescence he turns into a gigantic fireworks display. Loris Gréaud is an interdisciplinary artist who regularly turns to scientists, architects, musicians, film makers, actors and philosophers to work with him on his projects.

The second part of the [I] project is on show beneath the Louvre pyramid from June 19 to January 20, 2013.