Xavier Veilhan immortalises pop producers for latest exhibition
Most of the figures currently stationed throughout Emmanuel Perrotin’s New York gallery and, as of next Saturday, his gallery in the Marais, may not be easily identifiable at first glance—a near-life size Pharrell Williams in sequoia wood notwithstanding. But collectively, they depict some of the most important contributors to pop music over the past half-century: the producers. And in the mind of Xavier Veilhan, they represent a 'transversal dimension' that we sense, yet rarely ever see.
'I’m very much interested in conceptual art; and for me, music is conceptual art. But at the same time, it can make you happy, or make you cry or make you want to dance,' Veilhan told Wallpaper* from his industrial studio at the east edge of Paris, one week prior to the first of two openings. Both of which, incidentally, are silent; although friend Marc Teissier du Cros from the label Record Makers is said to be compiling demos produced by the subjects but never heard.
Veilhan - whose vast influence across contemporary art ranges from an enormous faceted blue bust of Le Corbusier (conveying a state of permanent contemplation in Miami’s Design District) to site-specific performance pieces and video collaborations - completed his latest series in just a few short months. He assumed that enlisting participants might prove as challenging as when he sculpted a who’s who of practicing architects that appeared on the grounds of Versailles in 2009.
Once Giorgio Moroder and reggae legend Lee 'Scratch' Perry signed on, he had little difficulty convincing the others—including Rick Rubin, Brian Eno, Nigel Godrich, Daft Punk’s Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter, Quincy Jones and Williams’ partner as The Neptunes, Chad Hugo. The only female presence is Éliane Radigue, who has collaborated with Veilhan on various past projects and is now 83 years old.
French electro-synth producer Philippe Zdar was his first subject and, like everyone else, was initially captured as a 3D scan. Veilhan likened the process to taking a picture in the early period of photography; which is to say, more labour and time-intensive than a regular camera—except that the resulting image appears in three dimensions. Each half-hour sitting, he added, provided an opportunity to glean information. 'An energy develops but then the pose changes.'
Where the artist’s signature approach to sculpture often reduces figures to geometric planes, this group of characters—eight in New York, four in Paris—expresses heightened realism. If they are less Veilhan-esque, they are more idiosyncratic. An oak facsimile of Jones, the folds of his shirt in relief from his belly, seems contently settled into an armchair; Rubin, also in oak, chills out on a mattress; Zdar, standing in blackened polyurethane resin, looks as if he is waiting for a concert to begin. All of them take their position from a monochrome double-stacked plinth, in shades from aubergine to peacock green. These are formal sculptures, played up with mainstream appeal.
Veilhan noted how linguistically, a producer invites various readings, from executive to content creator. Beyond that, he felt compelled to explore the 'fabrication' of music by immortalising those involved in the early stages of its conception. And of course, like any longtime fan, the access to these living legends was a bonus. Which is why he is already thinking ahead to a future series—Timbaland, RZA, DJ Premier, Dr. Dre and George Martin are all on his wishlist—that would be situated en plein air, arranged like the monumental heads of Easter Island. Call it Veilhan’s ambitious Volume Two.
ADDRESS
Galerie Perrotin, New York
909 Madison Avenue 10021
Galerie Perrotin, Paris
76 rue de Turenne 75003
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Shigeru Ban’s mini Paper Log House welcomed at The Glass House
'Shigeru Ban: The Paper Log House' is shown at The Glass House in New Canaan, USA as the house museum of American architect Philip Johnson plays host to the Japanese architect’s model temporary home concept
By Adrian Madlener Published
-
Artist Mickalene Thomas wrestles with notions of Black beauty, female empowerment and love
'Mickalene Thomas: All About Love’, a touring exhibition, considers Black female representation
By Hannah Silver Published
-
New Phaidon book celebrates the world's best designers
Designed for Life: The World’s Best Product Designers by Phaidon celebrates the rich contemporary landscape of product design
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Peter Blake’s sculptures spark joy at Waddington Custot in London
‘Peter Blake: Sculpture and Other Matters’, at London's Waddington Custot, spans six decades of the artist's career
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Oozing, squidgy, erupting forms come alive at Hayward Gallery
‘When Forms Come Alive: Sixty Years of Restless Sculpture’ at Hayward Gallery, London, is a group show full of twists and turns
By Hannah Silver Published
-
New glass sculpture creates a verdant wonderland at Apple’s Cupertino HQ
‘Mirage’ at Apple Park is the work of Zeller & Moye and artist Katie Paterson, a shimmering array of glass columns that snakes through the grounds of the company’s monumental HQ
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Man Ray’s sculptures go on show in New York
‘Man Ray: Other Objects’ opens at Luxembourg + Co, New York, revealing their author’s ‘artistic revolution’
By Hannah Silver Published
-
The best London art exhibitions to see now
Your guide to the best London art exhibitions, as chosen by the Wallpaper* arts desk
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Erwin Wurm’s pop-coloured fantasy land at Yorkshire Sculpture Park
In Erwin Wurm’s first UK museum show, ‘Trap of the Truth’, the artist transforms Yorkshire Sculpture Park into a slightly warped wonderland (10 June 2023 – 28 April 2024)
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Published
-
Sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro transforms Fendi’s Rome HQ into a theatre of myth and magic
Fendi’s Roman HQ sets the scene for ‘Il Grande Teatro delle Civiltà’ a major show by Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro, who has also created a one-off edition of the house’s iconic Peekaboo bag. Read more in the July 2023 Issue of Wallpaper*, on newsstands 8 June
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Published
-
Superflex on building an underwater city for fish: ‘there are different rules down there’
Danish art collective Superflex discuss their ambitious Super Reef, an underwater urbanisation project aiming to restore more than 55 square kilometres of stone reef in Danish seas
By Alice Godwin Published