Present on the visual arts scene for a decade now, Samuel Roy-Bois has made a name in recent years for the whimsy, rigour and intelligence of his work. For his first museum show, the artist has produced two installations—Satellites and Ghetto (2006)—a series of large drawings, and… a new word he has coined, “uninhabit,” which he explains as “the fact of feeling outside a world that is nonetheless familiar to us.”
“No way in other than with our eyes”
The first installation, Satellites, consists of two architectural modules with large windows that provide a sort of access for visitors, but only with their eyes. The modules rotate, giving new meaning to the idea of mobile architecture. The second installation, Ghetto, consists of a box, likewise windowed, the inside surface of which is covered entirely by a mattress. Unlike Satellites, this work invites the visitor to dive in and experience an inner space that is both private yet open to the public. A series of large drawings completes the presentation. Although they give an impression of familiarity as urban architecture, they have actually sprung straight from the artist’s imagination. As curator Gilles Godmer observes: “At the core of these uncommon, disconcerting works, the question of habitable space immediately comes to the fore, elicited by various incongruities, ambiguities and paradoxes that reveal a certain discomfort.”