A towering arc of weathering steel from Bernar Venet is casting its shadow across Dubai’s Custot Gallery until July 30, at a new exhibition of works from the French artist.The 7-meter-tall “79.5° Arc x 9,” 2009, is the centerpiece of Venet’s first show in Dubai, which will feature several other steel sculptures as well as paintings and drawings.The sculptures on display at Custot are heavily geometric, and Venet has titled them to very literally reflect their appearance. Visitors will have a chance to see several other series, including “Acute Angles” and “Straight Lines.”They will also gain insight into Venet’s process through drawings and designs from “Angles” and other sculptural series.Earlier in his career, Venet worked in wood, and some of these sculptures were originally created in that medium. Starting in the early 1980s, the artist began to favor steel, which enabled him to create larger-scale works, like his enormous public sculptures in San Francisco, Seoul, and other cities.Notable among the paintings on display is “Homage to Al-Khawarizmi n°2,” 2013, an abstract in acrylic on canvas inspired by the art of Arabic calligraphy. Venet painted this tribute to the eponymous mathematician for the 2013 Venice Biennale.While Venet is still primarily classified as a conceptual artist, his name is more and more associated with sculpture. In recent years, he has earned a range of accolades for his work, including the Legion of Honour—France’s highest order of merit—and a lifetime achievement award from the International Sculpture Centre.“Bernar Venet” runs until July 30 at Custot Gallery Dubai.
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