Subtle and refined – Thierry Furger’s new series Unorte represents a completely surprising urban aesthetic that refers to the unnoticed traces that graffiti writer leave in the city. The series of artworks is on view from May 31st to June 5th 2021 at Kolly Gallery.
With the title Unorte (engl. non-places) Thierry Furger refers to remote places where graffiti is practiced illegally. These are in particular storage facilities for trains, vacant buildings and factories, retaining walls as well as other artificial or suburban structures. All those places are located in public space but are very unpopular due to their unwelcoming atmosphere. In these gloomy corners and dark alleys that outsiders or intruders are not wanted. They are are surrounded by a shady atmosphere and no inspiring climate to unfold creatively. Nevertheless, for many sprayers precisely these inhospitable places become their creative homes and playgrounds, which are sought out again and during different periods of their artistic path. Over time, these places become a familiar between members of the graffiti scene.
„ Even the smallest traces can still tell stories.“
THIERRY FURGER, 2021.
Even though the metropolitan cities were built by humans, the dull concrete contrasts with any livelihood and therefore could use a creative boost. It is the graffiti writers who want to leave creative embellishments in this semipublic world. Most of the time these traces, in form of tags, throw ups and pieces, are yet not tolerated. Quite the contrary: they are immediately removed or torn off as soon as noticed. But not all traces can be easily removed. The fine dust of tiny particles of paint or small drips that fell onto the tracks during the act of spraying remain. These dust-like particles are often only visible to other sprayers when they hide under the trains to seek shelter with their faces just a few centimeters away from the track bed. Exactly this refined aesthetic is Thierry Furger’s artistic practice of the series Unorte. His paintings show these smallest particles of color, that create their own minimal visual language.
With the most recent series Unorte Furger underlines that even the smallest traces can still tell stories. The stories of illegal and in many cases unwanted graffiti, created under the most extreme conditions for nothing but a potential fine as reward and some fame from the graffiti community.
The infinite story of the transience of the graffiti is actually documented on railroad sidings, pebble stones and the ground, but always goes unnoticed. Unorte is the reference to all the graffiti created in dark, unwelcoming and unpopular semi-public places that existed only very briefly.
Tania di Brita
Artworks
Av. de Beauregard 1
1700 Fribourg
Switzerland
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