katharina grosse's pearlescent installation unfolds within espace louis vuitton in venice

dreamy iridescent installation by Katharina Grosse

German artist Katharina Grosse wraps Espace Louis Vuitton Venezia with a mesmerizing pearlescent installation. Taking shape as an ethereal prismatic veil, ‘Apollo, Apollo’ dramatically unfolds from the wall to the floor and mantles objects scattered around. Made of metallic mesh fabric, the installation creates a gleaming contrast against the black backdrop, with its body touching the walls gently.

Known for her prismatic swaths of color usually applied on large-scale artworks, the artist immerses the audience in a vibrant shroud, inviting them into a sensory narrative. ‘Apollo, Apollo’ bears her captivating identity, forming a portal to an imaginary world that encourages visitors to explore what’s reality and illusion.study for Apollo, Apollo,

a portal to a dreamlike world

For the Espace Louis Vuitton Venezia (see more here), the German artist (here) has printed intricate photography onto a metal mesh fabric that blends the transparent with the opaque, letting outer light filter through. The surface reflects visitors’ movements and celebrates the quintessentially Venetian mirror effect.

‘The image is chosen from a series of photographs showing situations or actions, connected to my painting practice in some way or another. It oscillates between surface, texture, image and object, order and disorder, destruction and creation, tension and release, forced and freeflowing movement.’ Katharina Grosse.

a metallic fluidity takes over ‘Apollo apollo’ installation

The resulting veil resembles knitted sequins and embraces the floor and walls hiding various objects below, such as a pair of boots and a folding chair. Apart from the prismatic paradoxes of its creator, the iridescent installation echoes its Venetian context and aesthetics — Fortuny fabrics, terrazzo mosaics, omnipresent water, and reflections.

‘Apollo, Apollo’ holds a compositive image of the artist’s hands printed on the mesh fabric. This gesture depicts a moment where the boundaries between painting and photography, image and body, real and illusion are blurred. ‘Painting leaps into an unknown sense of reality, as present, as a house, as versatile, as a spirit,’ mentioned the artist.