Varsi Residency

Varsi Art Lab, Rome, Italy
June 2023

During the two-week residency, with the support of 56Fili, I had the opportunity to explore the use of the screen printing technique, disrupting its conventional patterns and employing it as an extension of my artistic and aesthetic research.

The methodology applied to my generative art projects (Modo, Eltonolab, etc.) was consequently implemented in the productions of this residency. In a delicate balance between rules and chance, a new collection of screen-printed works emerged, breaking away from the typical series norms in favor of uniqueness.

I have created three new collections:

  • Strappato, a work of layering screen-printed and torn papers, a series of 8 unique pieces measuring 126 x 77 cm, numbered, mounted on wood, and 2 artist proofs on paper.
  • Otto, a series of 8 unique pieces measuring 100 x 70 cm, numbered, and 8 artist proofs.
  • Magari, a series of 25 unique pieces measuring 70 x 50 cm and 11 artist proofs.

The works are available here: galleriavarsi.it/artists/eltono

Strappato :

Otto :

Magari :

Photos: Ornella Mercier (@ornella.mercier)

Modo n.°55

Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille, France
October 2023

As part of its actions for inclusion and diversification of its audiences, the Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille opened a free space for children aged 0 to 6 in the heart of its atrium in the fall of 2023, in partnership with the art initiation center Mille Formes from Clermont-Ferrand. The idea is to provide young children with their first multisensory artistic experience centered around shapes and colors through contemporary artworks.

Alongside Claude Como, I was invited to present my Espaces Manipulables (Manipulable Spaces) project, which was developed in 2022 in collaboration with the art initiation center Mille Formes. Additionally, I was invited to paint the exterior wall of the exhibition space in the museum’s atrium. I executed the generative painting Modo n.°55 in seven days.

Modo n.°55 generative mural painting:

“1, 2, 3 couleurs” is a project conceived and supported by the Mediation and Audience Engagement department of the Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille / City of Lille. It received sponsorship from Rigolo Comme La Vie in collaboration with the We Act for Kids Fond’actions, as well as in-kind sponsorship from Unikalo.

Photos: Eltono

 

1, 2, 3, couleurs

Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille, France
October 2023

As part of its actions for inclusion and diversification of its audiences, the Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille opened a free space for children aged 0 to 6 in the heart of its atrium in the fall of 2023, in partnership with the art initiation center Mille Formes from Clermont-Ferrand. The idea is to provide young children with their first multisensory artistic experience centered around shapes and colors through contemporary artworks.

Alongside Claude Como, I was invited to present my Espaces Manipulables (Manipulable Spaces) project, which was developed in 2022 in collaboration with the art initiation center Mille Formes. Additionally, I was asked to paint the exterior wall of the exhibition space in the museum’s atrium. I executed the generative painting Modo n.°55 in seven days.

Modo n.°55 generative mural painting:

Espaces Manipulables, installation:

“1, 2, 3 couleurs” is a project conceived and supported by the Mediation and Audience Engagement department of the Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille / City of Lille. It received sponsorship from Rigolo Comme La Vie in collaboration with the We Act for Kids Fond’actions, as well as in-kind sponsorship from Unikalo.

Photos: Eltono

 

Downshifting

Redline Contemporary Art Center
2350 Arapahoe Street, Denver, U.S.A.
June 30th – July 23rd 2017

Modo n.º19

 

Curated by Ramón Bonilla, Downshifting is a group exhibition that calls attention to the meditative quality of reductive art, which encompasses minimal, post-minimal, hard edge and geometrical work. Reductive art work is typically explored in terms of formal qualities like medium, rarely conjuring conversations that respond or reflect on political realities. For many artists around the globe, however, reductive work can provide a sanctuary from the hyperactivity and sensory-flooding that has come to be our everyday reality.

Working with 12 internationally-based abstract and minimalist artists, Downshifting will transform RedLine’s 6,000-square-foot exhibition hall into a sanctuary of abstract works with programming that explores sensory deprivation rather than spectacle and provocation.

Participating Artists:
Eltono (France)
Louyse Blyton (Australia)
Ramón Bonilla (Puerto Rico)
Sandra Fettingis (USA)
Andrew Huffman (USA)
Kristofer Hultenberg (Denmark)
Michael Mork (Denmark)
Gary Andrew Clarke (England)
Ashley Frazier (USA)
SEIKON (Poland)
Hyland Mather (USA)
Frank T. Martinez (USA)

www.redlineart.org

Modo n.º19

Downshifting collective exhibition
Redline Contemporary Art Center
2350 Arapahoe Street, Denver, U.S.A.
June 30th – July 23rd 2017

Curated by Ramón Bonilla, Downshifting is a group exhibition that calls attention to the meditative quality of reductive art, which encompasses minimal, post-minimal, hard edge and geometrical work. Reductive art work is typically explored in terms of formal qualities like medium, rarely conjuring conversations that respond or reflect on political realities. For many artists around the globe, however, reductive work can provide a sanctuary from the hyperactivity and sensory-flooding that has come to be our everyday reality.

Working with 12 internationally-based abstract and minimalist artists, Downshifting will transform RedLine’s 6,000-square-foot exhibition hall into a sanctuary of abstract works with programming that explores sensory deprivation rather than spectacle and provocation.

Participating Artists:
Eltono (France)
Louyse Blyton (Australia)
Ramón Bonilla (Puerto Rico)
Sandra Fettingis (USA)
Andrew Huffman (USA)
Kristofer Hultenberg (Denmark)
Michael Mork (Denmark)
Gary Andrew Clarke (England)
Ashley Frazier (USA)
SEIKON (Poland)
Hyland Mather (USA)
Frank T. Martinez (USA)

www.redlineart.org

Modo n.º7

Generative and participative painting
Champollion Library, Grésilles neighborhood
Dijon, France 07/2016

2 days and 5 participants – project organized by Zutique Productions and part of a 3 week residence in the Grésilles neighborhood. Painting directed by Faustine Labeuche.

Venturing Beyond

Somerset House
London, U.K.
Exhibition curated by A by P
3 March – 2 May 2016

Footpaths
Four 15′ walking performances
Black ink on 285 g. Fabriano Rosaspina paper 100 x 70 cm, 2′ video


Rules:

  1. The participant of the action selects an area of public space and defines a specific time period.
  2. The perimeter of this predefined space is then circled in a clockwise fashion.
  3. When an outsider visible to the participant enters the perimeter, the participant must immediately attempt to reach the outsider’s point of intrusion.
  4. If the perimeter is further breached  during the attempt to reach the initial intruder’s entry point, this subsequent point becomes the new target.
  5. Once an intrusion point is reached, the participant continues circling the perimeter until either a further intruder enters or the time limit is reached.
  6. Finally a drawing is generated; a testimony to the footpath experience.

www.a-by-p.com
www.somersethouse.org.uk/visual-arts/venturing-beyond

Lugares Comunes

Luce + Eltono
SET Espai d’Art

Plaza Miracle del mocadoret 4, Valencia, Spain
November 13th 2015 – January 12th 2016

lugars-comunes-luce-eltono

“Lugares Comunes” was my first collaboration with Spanish artist Luce. We worked during three weeks on four installations based on observations and experiences we had around the city of Valencia.

1 – Escalera Butrón (break-in ladder):

This piece is about making holes in abandoned plot walls so we can facilitate the access to their interior. The holes were punched following a zig-zag pattern so that they could be used as a ladder. We used hammers and chisels and the holes came out irregular because they were made quickly and illegally. The size had to be big enough so a foot could fit in it. In the gallery, we showed five full scale “break-in ladders” made of wood. They were exact life size replicas and included the same shape, dimensions and arrangement for each hole. Reproducing the holes in wood had to be done rigorously and required precision and accuracy, which was a direct contrast to the way the holes were randomly produced on the street with a hammer and a lot of adrenaline.

2 – Periscopio (periscope):

This is a hollow omega shaped structure we build to be placed on top of deserted plot walls. Inside, a set of mirrors allowed us to literally see through the wall. We attached wheels so the artifact could be moved horizontally offering the viewer a proper exploration of the inside of the plots. In the gallery, we built a wall to support the periscope and showed a video of how people used it to see through different walls around the city.

3 – Asientos Acondicionados (seat conditioner):

All around the city, we observed a lot of unused L shaped brackets on places where an air conditioning unit used to be installed. We decided to exploit them to install a seat. The seat and the backrest leaned on the L squares mounted on the facade of the buildings. For the exhibition, we installed L brackets to set-up one chair and we showed four photographs of one of us sitting on it. These self-portraits served as a witnesses to the performances in the street as well as an opportunity for the public to see the artists enjoying the devices as they contemplate the city from a novel point of view.

4 – Compas (compass):

We used eight wood sticks of different lengths with a hole drilled on one side and a wax crayon attached to the other. In the street, we looked for unused screws coming out of the walls to hang them. These screws became center points to draw curves playing with the restrictions imposed by the position of the screw, the size of the stick and the surrounding elements. Inside the gallery, we reproduced a real situation that we observed in the street formed by eight screws and used the sticks to draw lines on one of the gallery walls. We made eight small scale drawings on paper that serve as a proof of the completion of the mural.

Extras:

Additional actions we did during the preparation of the show. Experimentations that we didn’t show in the exhibition but that were part of the process.

 

Pictures of the show: