For the first time, an exhibition compares the work of Yves Klein (1928-1962) and Arman (1928-2005), the two French artists were key exponents of the celebrated "Nouveau Réalisme" movement, both born in Nice and close friends in their younger years.
The exhibition brings together sixty works from prestigious private collections and highlights two opposing and complementary aspects of their poetics, namely Le Vide and Le Plein (the Void and the Full). The two elements explored by Yves Klein and Arman in their artistic practice traverse eras and cultures, and focus on disciplines ranging from physics to philosophy, poetry to the popular imagination. For Klein Le Vide, as a spatial entity, resonated with the poetic dimension of "immateriality” that he sought to embrace throughout his artistic career, influenced by Zen philosophy. Arman, on the other hand, looked to the concept of Le Plein to celebrate industrially produced objects, which he amassed to the point of saturating the given space.
Curated by Bruno Corà, the exhibition is produced in collaboration with the Yves Klein Foundation. The exhibition design is created by Mario Botta.
