AK011
Born in Paris in 1946 and relocated to New York City in 1979, Alain Kirili is a sculptor whose work is driven by tactility and spontaneity. His sculptures and drawings are influenced by jazz and the philosophical writings of Julia Kristeva and Roland Barthes. Regarding his need for dimensional manifestations of his work Kirili states, “I was interested in this idea of deconstruction, but suddenly I felt I could not survive if I did not have tactility. I could not be satisfied only with a conceptual approach to art. I need incarnation. I discovered that conceptual art was actually a puritanical approach. The de-materialization of art was too prudish for me.”1
This drawing is one of many works from Kirili’s ongoing Commandment series executed in both iron and charcoal. The series, named and influenced by a visit to New York’s Jewish Museum, is made up of distinct geometric forms evocative of glyphs, calligraphy, and ancient alphabets.
1. In Conversation with Robert C. Morgan for The Brooklyn Rail, accessed February 9. 2015, http://www.brooklynrail.org/2012/05/art/alain-kirili-with-robert-c-morgan,