John Armleder

John Armleder was born in Geneva in 1948, where he still lives and works today. The artist’s work is internationally recognized, and he is particularly interested in the perception and reception of his pieces, as well as their integration into the environment. In 1969, he founded the Ecart group with other artists close to Fluxus. Their ambition was to master all phases of artistic production, from conception to distribution.

John Armleder began his career developing abstract paintings with geometric shapes and a formalist character. He is assimilated to the neo-geo trend and creates pieces in tension between painting and sculpture. In his work, references and borrowings from art history are fully assumed.

Capsule stools and Time frames

Glitter, a familiar element in the Swiss artist’s paintings, here applied in smooth layers by a body painter specializing in motorcycle and car decoration, covers the minimal form of the stool.

Capsule by John Armleder is based on Max Bill’s Ulm stools. Designed in 1954 for the rooms of the Ulm School of Design, they are now produced by WB Form and bear Max Bill’s signature. This icon of Swiss functionalist design is covered with the same glittery surface as the Time frames.

The minimalist forms of Time and Capsule are asserted and yet neutralized by the glitter coating. They become fractal surfaces made up of an incalculable number of tiny elements arranged at random, while joyfully embracing the potentiality of a cheap drift.

Time and Capsule are two complementary editions. Combined, they function as Furniture Sculpture, the famous series initiated by Armleder in 1979 that combines paintings and furniture. Capsule stools are available in 6 glittery colors (dark blue, light blue, yellow, purple, light green and dark green). Each color is produced in 6 numbered and signed copies.