Guillaume Dénervaud

'Spectrolia Corporation', Guillaume Dénervaud's exhibition at Hard Hat, is organized around two large drawings: all-over tracery made of round, serpentine abstractions, interconnected shapes, produced thanks to a patiently developed technique. If the images by the Geneva-based artist evoke the fascinating textures of digital renderings, the works are in fact painstakingly handmade, using masking tape, scissors and graphite powder, enhanced with spray paint. Shiny magnet metal balls seem to crawl over the surface of the magmatic pictures, that are bathed in an industrial orange light, creating a crepuscular, sci-fi atmosphere. Suspended from the ceiling of the space, a spiraling sculptural element reinforces the dizzying effect of the display. In the vitrine of the gallery, Dénervaud has placed a found object, a plastic box used to measure air pollution which he has transformed into a lighting device, discreetly indicating the apocalyptic tone of the show, oscillating between illumination and extinction.
- Yann Chateigné