Unquestionably Fascinating

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Review

Roman Signer Exhibition

Swiss artist Roman Signer's eclectic work is difficult to pin down, dabbling as it does in elements of sculpture, installation and pyrotechnics, and skilfully oscillating between the avant-garde and simply absurd.

A collection of pieces both from his early career and those created since 2002, this exhibition chronologically traces the development of the artist with a degree of success. In addition to installations such as 'Kayak' which features, oddly enough, a Kayak sliced into three neat segments with the aid of explosives, there are several of Signer's films on show. These are the most interesting features of the exhibition: 'Hayfever' shows Signer seated in an empty room as grass explodes through a hole in the floor, a short film exuding unsettling humour. The artist's affinity with pyrotechnics is undoubtedly a key feature of his films: in 'Office Chair' we see Signer spinning in a chair powered by the force of two hand-held rockets; an explosion in 'Dot' ironically mocks the act of artistic creation through an explosion which creates a piece of artwork in itself. Signer has also created a piece specifically for this exhibition, entitled 'Sand Installation', lending a degree of currency to the collection on display.

Throughout the exhibition, it becomes clear that Signer is preoccupied with forces of movement and power, and he often allows these to collide with man-made elements, a subtle reflection on the essential connection between man and the natural world. Though aspects of destruction are observed in his use of pyrotechnics, they rarely cause any real damage and significantly, the aforementioned link to nature remains in place despite the efforts of the artist to alter it within his work.

Relying heavily on spectacle, Signer's skill lies in observing absurdity within the mundane. His use of everyday objects such as bottles, plastic bags and umbrellas, and their subsequent removal out of context is always daring, if at times a little difficult to grasp in its intention. Though his work is always thought-provoking, it almost appeals more to the analytic mind than to the soul, an unusual stance for any type of artwork. While those who appreciate works of sculpture and installation will marvel at the talents of Signer, others may find themselves simply marvelling at the sheer absurdity of the unquestionably fascinating pieces on show.

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