Pol Bury
Ponctuation
Artist
Pol Bury
(1922, La Louvière - 2005, Paris), Belgian
Original Title
Ponctuation
Date1959
Mediumpainted and perforated hardboard, metal and electric motor
DimensionsØ 70 cm
Classificationsmultimedia works
Credit LineKunsthalle Praha
DescriptionPol Bury is an important figure of post-war art whose contributions mainly pertain to kinetic art and his membership in the international network of the art group ZERO, most active during the late 1950s and early 1960s. His oeuvre permeated by experiments with very slow movement and by an effort to incorporate an element of time into sculpture, linked to a desire to synthesize science, aesthetics, literature, history, and philosophy. This focus also stemmed from a broader post-war current of thought which sought to improve the conditions of life via technology. Essential for Bury’s art is an incorporation of the viewer, who becomes part of a deep, contemplative experience facilitated by sight, touch, and sound. A significant change in his artistic trajectory occurred in 1950, when he visited Alexander Calder’s exhibition at the Galerie Aime Maeght in Paris, where he was captivated by the movement of Calder’s mobiles, consequently becoming inspired to experiment with movement and create sculptures with moving components. His first abstract, kinetic reliefs, known as Plans mobiles, were created in 1953 and still drew heavily on the tradition of painterly geometry. These pieces were based on a manual type of movement triggered by the viewer via mechanical interactions with the constituent elements of the artwork. In 1959, Bury began to use a motor in his mobile reliefs—known as Punctuations—which facilitated the slow movement of monochromatic reliefs. The visual dimension of these works, which were further differentiated into several subcategories, was reduced to a color palette of black and white, while their morphology evolved toward new, organic shapes. Through their slow movement and unpredictable stops and starts, Bury’s works challenge our understanding of time. They marked a definitive split with the tradition of painting and a search for an interpretational framework rooted in the viewer’s subjective experience. Around 1963, Bury began using recycled wood to create a series title Meubles, which reinterpreted regular furniture, with mobile elements emitting different sounds, thus imbuing the pieces with a surreal dimension. Subsequently, he began creating photographs and prints depicting famous monuments with noticeably altered architectural structures. Bury’s sculptures and kinetizations defy the laws of gravity, thus generating moments of physical uncertainty. During the late 1960s, Bury worked with different types of steel, copper, and polished brass, allowing him to work on a bigger scale and simultaneously achieve a more elegant morphology and more interesting reflections of light. Metal was also suitable for his new interest in largescale sculptures and fountains, leading him to explore new methods of powering these pieces, most commonly working with water and magnets.
Punctuation (1959) represents the mobile reliefs which Bury created from 1959 onward. This black-and-white piece exemplifies the reliefs composed of a white bottom panel and a black upper panel, with the surface of the latter perforated by small holes. The slow movement of the piece gradually transforms the shape of the white bottom layer. For Bury, movement was not only another dimension through which to explore the formal interplay of shape and color—it was primarily an unsettling yet incredibly effective means of artistic expression, inviting subjective interpretations of the experience.
Pol Bury (1922, Haine-Saint-Pierre – 2005, Paris) briefly attended the Academie de Beaux-Arts in Mons (1938–1939) before becoming a disciple of Achille Chavé, the founder of the Belgian surrealist group Rupture. Bury’s paintings from the late 1930s and early 1940s featured in the 1945 International Surrealist Exhibition in Brussels. Surrealism remained latently present in his work throughout his career, as did a dry sense of humor often conveyed by the titles of his pieces. His early kinetic sculptures were included in the 1955 exhibition Le Mouvement at the Galerie Denis René in Paris. In 1961, Bury moved to Paris, where he had two solo exhibitions at the innovative Galerie Iris Clert in 1962 and 1963. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he also exhibited with the art group ZERO at several exhibitions in Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands, and contributed to the group’s magazine. In 1964, Bury and ZERO exhibited at Documenta 3 in the German city of Kassel. The same year, he represented Belgium at the 32nd Venice Biennale. In 1964 and 1966, Bury had two solo exhibitions at the Lefebre Gallery in New York City, which also brought him a degree of financial success, allowing him to begin working with new materials and create larger artworks. From the 1970s onward, retrospective exhibitions of his work took place regularly: the first travelled around the USA between 1970 and 1971, ending at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City. Subsequent exhibitions were held in Mexico City (Museo de Arte Moderno, 1977–1978), Paris (Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, 1982) and Bottrop in Germany (Josef Albers Museum, 1990). Today, Bury’s work is included in numerous important art collections worldwide, including the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, the Tate Modern in London, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Musée d´Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, the BOZAR in Brussels, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid, the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, and the Science Museum in Taipei.
Punctuation (1959) represents the mobile reliefs which Bury created from 1959 onward. This black-and-white piece exemplifies the reliefs composed of a white bottom panel and a black upper panel, with the surface of the latter perforated by small holes. The slow movement of the piece gradually transforms the shape of the white bottom layer. For Bury, movement was not only another dimension through which to explore the formal interplay of shape and color—it was primarily an unsettling yet incredibly effective means of artistic expression, inviting subjective interpretations of the experience.
Pol Bury (1922, Haine-Saint-Pierre – 2005, Paris) briefly attended the Academie de Beaux-Arts in Mons (1938–1939) before becoming a disciple of Achille Chavé, the founder of the Belgian surrealist group Rupture. Bury’s paintings from the late 1930s and early 1940s featured in the 1945 International Surrealist Exhibition in Brussels. Surrealism remained latently present in his work throughout his career, as did a dry sense of humor often conveyed by the titles of his pieces. His early kinetic sculptures were included in the 1955 exhibition Le Mouvement at the Galerie Denis René in Paris. In 1961, Bury moved to Paris, where he had two solo exhibitions at the innovative Galerie Iris Clert in 1962 and 1963. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he also exhibited with the art group ZERO at several exhibitions in Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands, and contributed to the group’s magazine. In 1964, Bury and ZERO exhibited at Documenta 3 in the German city of Kassel. The same year, he represented Belgium at the 32nd Venice Biennale. In 1964 and 1966, Bury had two solo exhibitions at the Lefebre Gallery in New York City, which also brought him a degree of financial success, allowing him to begin working with new materials and create larger artworks. From the 1970s onward, retrospective exhibitions of his work took place regularly: the first travelled around the USA between 1970 and 1971, ending at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City. Subsequent exhibitions were held in Mexico City (Museo de Arte Moderno, 1977–1978), Paris (Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, 1982) and Bottrop in Germany (Josef Albers Museum, 1990). Today, Bury’s work is included in numerous important art collections worldwide, including the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, the Tate Modern in London, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Musée d´Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, the BOZAR in Brussels, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid, the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, and the Science Museum in Taipei.
