The Geneva visual artist John Armleder is currently exhibiting. Portrait of a big name in contemporary art with an international reputation.
Known to every art lover, John Armleder is often considered a living legend. A label that he says he “doesn’t realize” and even doubts this so-called reputation: “Most people can’t pronounce my name so maybe that’s not the case,” quips the artist. .
This Thursday, November 7 marks the opening of the exhibition “Soubresauts” at the Olivier Varenne and Lovay galleries. Le Genevois is also still on display at the Barbier Mueller Museum with its Transparences exhibition.
Is there a John Armleder recipe for success? “No”, replies the main person concerned, emphasizing that if there is a secret, it is that of “staying alive”. If his new exhibition of the visual artist is akin to a great artistic biography, John Armleder remains convinced that the success of his creations is due to the users. “It is the person who looks at the work who is the artist,” interprets the visual artist.
John Armleder, “total freedom”
Before becoming an artist, John Armleder went to prison. His refusal to perform military service earned him seven months in Saint-Antoine prison. A “fundamental” experience which forged the character. The rebel at heart believes that he belongs to a free generation because, according to him, the Second World War “erased a certain number of things”. A unique path, strewn with chance and other twists and turns. Today, randomness is an integral part of his paintings.
