Visitors in Paris have one last chance to see one of Fujiko Nakaya's 'mist' works, displayed at the Bourse de Commerce. The Cloud #07156 installation has been decorating the Rotunda of the building since mid-June and will be available until September 14th.
The piece by the Japanese artist is part of the Clair-Obscur exhibition. This exposition is inspired by the philosophy of Giorgio Agamben and the technique of chiaroscuro, which has roots in Mannerist and Baroque painting of the 16th century. The exhibition features over a hundred works from the Pino Collection, one of the largest private collections of contemporary art in the world, owned by French billionaire François Pinault, exploring the aesthetic tension between light and shadow.
For Nakaya's work, the prestigious interior of the museum—the central architectural area designed by Tadao Ando—was chosen. Visually, the sculpture creates the impression of space being filled with a cloud of vapor. The mist is generated by a system of ultra-fine spray nozzles that release water vapor into the Rotunda in 15-minute cycles across three acts, ensuring the constant transformation of the sculpture.
In addition to Nakaya's work, selected pieces by Victor Man, Siegmar Polke, Laura Lamiel, Philippe Parrino, Bill Viola, as well as films by Soadat Ismailova are also on display at the Bourse de Commerce.
Fujiko Nakaya, born in 1933 in Sapporo, Japan, is known worldwide for her mist sculptures. She began her artistic career with painting but soon discovered an interest in other fields. In the mid-1960s, she joined the Experiments in Arts and Technology group in New York, which fostered collaboration between artists, engineers, and scientists.
Driven by an interest in movement and natural phenomena, the Japanese artist developed the Mist System in partnership with engineer Thomas Mi. This mechanism, created in 1969, allows for the formation of cloud sculptures from water vapor. The artist still uses this system today: it consists of high-pressure pumps and spray nozzles that eject micro-droplets of water, mimicking the effect of mist.
Fujiko Nakaya's first mist sculpture was presented at the Osaka World Exhibition in 1970, covering the Pepsi Pavilion with its vapor cloud. Since then, her sculptures have been installed worldwide in cities such as Sydney, New York, Bilbao, San Francisco, and Paris.
The Bourse de Commerce is located at 2 rue de Viarmes in Paris and is open daily from 11:00 to 19:00, closing only on Tuesdays. The museum is undergoing internal renovations in preparation for the next exhibition, 'Remember Me,' which runs until October 25th. Due to this, the second-floor galleries are closed, and tickets have temporarily become cheaper. Fujiko Nakaya's Cloud #07156 will be open to the public until September 14th. During this transition period, admission for the general public is 9 euros, and for youth aged 18 to 26, it is 7 euros. Tickets can be purchased on the Pinault Collection Bourse de Commerce website.