The exhibition "Hors Piste" features about thirty abstract paintings in various sizes. The brushstrokes are heavy with matter and slide over the white surface like a snowboarder leaving their mark on fresh, untouched snow.
David Weber, also known as Swox, was born in 1977 in Switzerland. He currently lives and works in Lausanne.
Swox is an emerging figure of abstract art on the contemporary scene. His artistic sensitivity formed early, through exposure to graffiti on trains and along railway tracks. In the late 80's, he began graphic research by sketching letters and perspectives. He creates a universe that draws inspiration from multiple sources including architecture, mountains and oceans, travel, and sliding sports. After several solo exhibitions in Switzerland, the Speerstra Gallery Paris invites Swox to exhibit for the first time in France, with "Hors Piste".
Far from his usual reference points, Swox is exploring new materials, pigments, and energy in his work. The exhibition "Hors Piste" features about thirty abstract paintings in various sizes. The brushstrokes are heavy with matter and slide over the white surface like a snowboarder leaving their mark on fresh, untouched snow. Swox wants to convey the feelings of freedom and the rush of adventure that he experiences while participating in sports like snowboarding and surfing. The exhibition is an invitation to experience these same sensations without constraint. These sports are all about curves and spontaneous trajectories that are decided upon by instinct and the moment. The project is ambitious, risky and vertiginous. Every curve must be mastered, every surface must be demanding in its realization. The structure appears, bringing to life the furrows and ridges of the material, capturing light in delicate, smooth, matte or shiny traces.
A dialogue between light and materials full of depth is established, immersed in contrasts and nuances. The presence of each work is monumental and sculptural. The impressive atmosphere is further emphasized by the staging, which reveals the singular character of the works even more. Of course, one can feel the influence of Pierre Soulages, like an imprint, but the exhibition "Hors Piste" takes us into a new dimension of contemplation.
© Marie Bourtayre / © Speerstra Gallery
