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SHALOM !
Typographic reaction to a contemporary phenomenon through a series of Posters.
ABSALON‘S HUMAN CELLULES
BACKGROUND •The inhabitation cells (“Cellules d’habitation“) are six living pods for a single person designed by Israeli-born artist Absalon (original name- Meir Eshel). •After leaving his home country in the late 1980s, the artist joined Paris where he started a short but intense career as a sculptor. •The “cellules” are his last and most famous work: conceived for himself, each one was to be placed in a public space of a different city (Paris, Tokyo, New York, Tel Aviv, Zurich and Frankfurt). •The minimal living units were thought to let the artist embrace a nomadic lifestyle, and at the same time an ascetic and isolated existence, protected from an oppressive society. •They were also an element of protest. In an interview for the Cellules exhibition he stated: ‘These homes will be a means of resistance to a society that keeps me from becoming what I must become’.
living-pods
protective shelters and monastic cells
idealised architecture.
element of protest
Cell 1 (Paris)
Cell 3 (New york)
Cell 4 (Tel Aviv) Cell 6 (Tokyo)
The exterior geometry of each cell responds to its specific location, proportions and measures of the interiors are decided according to the artist’s own body, but not only to that. The minimum habitat is organized to fulfill Absalon’s exigences both in terms of “standard” daily living (there’s a kitchenette, a mattress, a work-space, a washroom and a toilet) and of his personal mental needs for hiding, contemplating, challenging himself and his habits. The notion of comfort is questioned because in the narrow space each acts demand specific efforts to be performed. Bending, stretching, climbing are required in order to “use” the cell: to inhabit becomes a problematic action, not a mundane activity. The complex geometries ultimately reflect a mental space, the artist’s tension and his interior research. The complex geometries ultimately reflect a mental space
Modernist
Exhibit
Individualism Basics
Isolation Cluster
Culture Neutral Mute
White Cells Cellules Body Dimensions Art, Interior Design
Heterotopic KEYWORDS
Bauhaus
Urban Space
Conceptual Statement
Geometric
Contemplation
Interior & Exterior
Function & Form
Simple Forms
Private / Social
Living Units
Order
‘HOW TO ISOLATE YOURSELF AND INHABIT EVERYWHERE.’ Absalon’s Living Cells (1991-1993)
#Basic Concept
Series #1 JUST REACTING.
individual
Isolate. Inhabit.
[
n for Nomadic. Neutral.
]
‘a’ is for art. architecture.
‘n’ is for nomadic. neutral.
‘l’ is for living
‘’u’ is for urban.
Series #2 EXTRACTING THE LETTERFORMS FROM THE ARCHITECTURE
for autonomy Autonomy is an individual's capacity for self-determination or self-governance.
no-madic A nomad is someone who lives by traveling from place to place. Nomadic thus means anything that involves moving around a lot.
A dot is a small round mark or spot.
Approach #3 CREATING MORE LETTERFORMS FROM THE EXISTING ONES.
-y-
Series #3 DIALOGUE WITH THE ARTIST (TYPOGRAPHICAL SCULPTURES)
Wassup?
AAaaeeAaaaa aaaaeeAAaaa
for clautrophobia Claustrophobia is an abnormal fear of being in enclosed or narrow places
THE SCULPTURES EXPLORED THE IDEA OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN: - Form & function - Physical & Conceptual - Second and Third dimension
The complex geometries reflect a mental space
TODA!