N° 10

2005

Acrylic and resin on canvas

185 x 185 cm (72 13/16 x 72 13/16 in.)

Is it a labyrinth? A decorative motif? An optical illusion? Or simply a line that the painter has enjoyed tracing on the canvas all the way until one end joins the other? Bernard Frize's Nº10 painting can have a totally different meaning depending on how it is approached.

In the artist's own words, “These paintings are similar to mathematical diagrams such as those found in Vanuatu, India, Angola, Egypt or in the Celtic culture. [...] I also took interest in this long, hypnotic line that winds in a frame and always comes back to its starting point. It is painted in a non qualifiable gray and doesn't show what is under and above.” (Excerpt from the catalogue of the exhibition Bernard Frize. Without Remorse, p. xx)

Bernard Frize's Nº10 painting was first shown in 2006 at the Where Are We Going? exhibition at Palazzo Grassi, in Venice. It was loaned to Centre Pompidou for the retrospective exhibition on the artist held in 2019-2020.
Exhibitions
Bernard Frize's other artwork