18% Gray

Marte Johnslien, Plein soleil, 2008, Painted plywood, 120 cm x 47 cm x 55 cm x3, Photo: Marte Johnslien.

Marte Johnslien, M.310, 2008, Painted plywood, plastic tubes, 303 cm x 430 cm x 340 cm. 

A Mundaneum was an archive started in 1907 that was supposed to cover all knowledge in the world. The man behind it was Belgian scientist Paul Otlet, a pioneer in the field of information technology and documentation. He worked on the archive until his death in 1944. In the 1920s, the idea about the total archive was extended to include the building of a whole city; Cité Mondiale. This was an initiative for peace, a positivistic wish to gather the whole world in a place where all countries and cultures were represented. Otlet had many plans for where the Cité Mondiale should be built and was at one point offered a location outside Rome by Mussolini. Cité Mondiale was never realized and Otlet’s archive stowed away until 1994, when Belgian authorities decided to build a museum based on Paul Otlet’s work. The background material for this exhibition is largely obtained from the museum that was named Mundaneum. The museum includes among other things, Otlet’s correspondence with the architect Le Corbusier, who became an important support for Paul Otlet, and the architect for Cité Mondiale.  The main building was shaped as a 7-step pyramid that was supposed to hold the museum of human history.

In the exhibition 18% GRAY, Johnslien has built a sculpture based on the shape of the pyramid entitled M.310. The façade of M.310 imitates the so-called “brise soleil”, a light shading device which many addresses as an invention of Le Corbusier. Many of his buildings were equipped with such shading constructions, which decreased the amount of direct sunshine through the windows. Similar structures are found in photo studios, as devices for controlling the light. The honeycomb filter gathers beams for highlights, while providing shade for other areas, much like the brise-soleil.

Another photographic device present in the work 18%Gray, a sculpture painted in the same color as the so-called “grey card”. The “grey card” is used in photography to obtain a precise light measurement. The card has a color that equals 18% gray, considered to be a photographic “point zero”. The sculpture 18% Gray is an imitation of a screen designed by the Irish architect and designer Eileen Gray. Gray has been recognized as an important role model for the more famous Le Corbusier in the last years. The two architects had a thorny relationship due to Le Corbusiers intense admiration for her villa, E.1027 which is located on the French Riviera. Eventually Le Corbusier took over the house and made changes to it without her consent.

These stories make out a backdrop for the modernist legacy and its importance to history. Johnslien has meticulously sampled material as her project has shifted directions or taken new turns, from the world museum Mundaneum via the architect Le Corbusier, to the role of Eileen Gray. These stories are all collected in a handmade artist book presented in the exhibition.

With this project, Marte Johnslien examines how information is collected and categorized. She draws up lines between big themes such as modernism, distribution of information and the use of historical material in art.

The exhibition is kindly supported by Arts Council Norway, Industriplast and Bang & Olufsen.