The Archipelago on Fire

Yamamoto Keiko Rochaix

4 October - 25 January

Yamamoto Keiko Rochaix is pleased to announce ‘The Archipelago on Fire‘ of Delaine Le Bas. The third solo show of the artist at the gallery is dedicated to sharing and spreading the notion of the decaying of our planet, one of the themes for Le Bas’s practice increasingly important in recent years. By turning the gallery space into a land inhabited by fantastic creatures inspired by mythologies, Le Bas reminds us of awe and mysticism humans felt and continue to feel for the Mother Earth and how our acts are threatening it.

A very large textile work hung like a medieval tapestry stands high on a wall of the ground-floor gallery. ‘L’Archipel en Feu’ or ‘The Archipelago on Fire’ sets the tone for the exhibition, calling for attention to the lamentable state of the nature, the British Isles or any isles, and our Mother Earth. Painted, collaged and embellished with sequins, plastic flowers and other tiny trinkets, the work exudes powerful message with strong colour palette featuring a strange headless human-like figure with multiple legs and arms, burning fire with a mountain of skulls, as well as a young woman’s head that has recurrently appeared in some of the artist’s textile based works in earlier years.

The space in front of the tapestry is a sea of tall textile hangings with painting of fantastic creatures. It is a sort of three-dimensional maze where audience is invited to stroll. The images of imaginary animals and hybrids of humans and androids inspired by a various mythologies are almost fearful, yet ethereal quality of organdie as the support for the paintings and glimpse of humour contribute to a sense of lightness. When walking in between the paintings hung from the ceiling, audience may feel the very slight breeze made by the gently swaying organdie, a small yet important detail that renders the installation tactile.

Smaller scale paintings complete with found frames adorn the downstairs gallery. Some of the paintings comprised of only simple marks are all the more striking for their very simplicity. Each painting is paired with elaborate, classic frames found in the market; the juxtaposition of old and new, or of intuitively incompatible elements is a display of freedom that Le Bas has constantly demonstrated throughout her career.