Swiss artist Pipilotti Rist’s lush, heady exhibition, I Packed the Postcard in My Suitcase, has opened at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art in Melbourne.
Rist’s works often deal with issues that are related to gender, sexuality and the human body in a way that evokes a sense of unadulerated happiness and innocence. I Packed the Postcard in My Suitcase, the first major exhibition of her work to be shown in Australia, uses light and colour to challenge our senses. The vivid video and installation pieces that make up the exhibition create a dream-like, surreal state for the viewer. Rist says the exhibition is about redefining interior spaces and using light and colour to challenge our senses.
A central area in the exhibition includes Desso carpet tiles that are arranged as organic platforms on which visitors can rest, allowing them to become immersed in the magical kaleidoscopes of light and colour projected onto the walls and ceiling. The exhibition also highlights the relevance of carpet in interior design and how it can transform interior spaces in unexpected ways.
Desso’s focus on sustainability and environmental principles are reflected in Rist’s organic, environmentally-focused artworks, which involve shifting perspectives on the four elements of earth, wind, water and fire.
Pipilotti Rist is regarded as one of the world’s top contemporary artists. She has shown in major exhibitions and festivals around the world, including the Venice Biennale in 2005.
I Packed the Postcard in My Suitcase is open to the public until 4 March 2012.
