© Zilvinas Kempinas, Courtesy of the artist and Yvon Lambert Paris, New York.
Zilvinas Kempinas is a Lithuanian artist known for his installations, and his new solo exhibit at Yvon Lambert New York is undeniably an epitome of installation art. “BALLROOM” is the name of the show and piece, for this single work in this single room of the gallery is the entire exhibit. First displayed at the Musée d’Art Moderne in Luxembourg this summer, BALLROOM (2010) is consistent with Kempinas’s use of unique materials and light and space manipulation, and the effect is dazzling.
The walls of the room are covered in sheets of Mylar draped from the ceiling. In the middle of the room, several large fans hang, and each one’s air currents moving a single blue or red light bulb and circular strip of Mylar on the floor. The only light in the room emanates from the colored bulbs, while their warped reflections are thrown back by the Mylar. With the whooshing sounds of the fan as music and the spinning lights as dancers, the effect is an eerie, human-less ballroom. Even if you’re not enthralled by the visual, you will at least be enthralled by the intricate and delicate way BALLROOM is put together. After all, Kempinas is also famous for his use of physics.
“BALLROOM” is on view until October 16, 2010, though more of Kempinas’s art will be displayed at MoMA’s upcoming group exhibit “On Line: Drawing Through the Twentieth Century” opening November 21, 2010.
© Zilvinas Kempinas, Courtesy of the artist and Yvon Lambert Paris, New York.
