J. C. FONTANIVE

NEW LINES

-PAPER. ALUMINUM, POLYCARBONATE, RUBBER CORD, STEEL WIRE, ELECTRONICS
181 CM X 121 CM X 7 CM (VARIABLE)


New Lines, rows of aluminium triangles in bright, solid colours – red, vibrant blue, yellow, white, orange, black – slowly rotate thanks to a system of steel wire and rubber cords. Their monochromatic patterns suggest the colour-coded distress-signal flags that are run up the mast of ailing ships, to communicate sea disasters without resorting to language: a red and yellow triangle=‘man overboard’; white on red=‘require assistance’. In this scenario, Fontanive’s flag-like shapes seem to flip cheerily from one maritime catastrophe to the other.
-Gilda Williams