Bamboo Lover
Laurent Martin Lo
Born in France and trained as a visual artist in Paris, for many years he worked as creative director both in advertising and fashion. His first encounter with bamboo was totally circumstantial but it was “love at first sight”, the artist states.
Now in this extraordinary retrospective exhibition, Laurent Martin «Lo» takes us on a captivating and inspiring journey through the past two decades of his artistic endeavors. Rooted in his profound passion for bamboo as the quintessential material for his sculptures, this exhibition brings together a remarkable collection of artworks and objects that the artist has accumulated over the years, along with new and never-before-seen creations.
Divided in 9 separated exhibition rooms showcasing original and one-of-a-kind bamboo sculptures, the retrospective is an immersive experience that highlights the importance of the artist’s will and the love and respect for the material.
Each one of the exhibition halls emphasizes the visual and physical qualities of Bamboo, in a sort of visual journey that takes us from the very beginning, that primary contact with the material and the importance of it pureness and virginity, to later embark us towards the understanding of matter, of the physical external elements that shape our reality and that hence affect the artistic practice when working with such a natural material.
WELCOME
2023. Bamboo, fishing net thread and ceramic ball
110 x 250 x 250 cm; 250 cm rotation
In this fist Solo Exhibition by Laurent Martin «Lo» at Casavells, the artist makes us travel, in space, time and matter, he makes us discover through his intricate yet balanced compositions the importance of concepts such as flexibility and universal equilibrium. This is an invitation to enter his world and to be mesmerized by the power of Bamboo and that of the artist’s savoir-faire.
BIRTH DAY
2023, Bamboo, fishing net thread and ceramic ball. 120 x 150 x 280 cm
«They are more like amulets than sculptures […] Bamboo has a special energy, it absorbs electromagnetic fields generating an atmosphere of calm and tranquility.»
- Laurent Martin ‘Lo’ for Utempodra
GALACTIC 07
2023, Taiwan smoked bamboo, titan braid thread, leads and ceramic ball. 90 x 140 x 140 cm; 140 cm rotation
GALACTIC 01
2022, Taiwan smoked bamboo, titan braid thread, leads and ceramic ball. 100 x 240 x 240 cm; 240 cm rotation
FLYING VESSEL 03
2018, Nigra bamboo, titan fishing net thread and ceramic balls. 120 x 70 x 42 cm; 80 cm rotation
LE VENT EN POUPE 02
2023, Black bamboo from Bali, titan braid thread, leads, steel and copper base. 60 x 47 x 15 cm
DREAMBOAT
2022, Bamboo, titan braid thread, leads, brass, steel base and balance system. 95 x 65 x 20 cm; 85 cm rotation
The exhibition has been designed with the idea of taking the visitor on a journey through the career of the French artist, so the rooms of the Palau have been divided into themes, phases, each an experience in which to travel back in time and understand the why behind Laurent Lo’s creations. And like all journeys, we must start at the beginning. Origin Room is a time capsule, a room full of treasures; personal objects that narrate the artist’s travels since he left in 2004 for Delhi, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos. His passion, love and the sensuality he found in plant material can be seen in Love Room. Shibari Room initiates a conversation around the similes found between the erotic tensions of the Japanese style of bondage and the equal tensions in the floating moviles. Attempts to understand and find universal balance in Galactic Room; to feel the wind, the sea, the matter in Wind Room. In Sister’s Room we will be in search of inspiration in flexibility and lightness, in the strength of the fragile; get invited to contemplate the very own origins of our world in Big Bang Room. Finally the tour ends in a meditative exercise, Meditation Room, which together with the last hall, Lo’s Room, revisit, through poetry and meditation, the artist’s journey and his intrapersonal relationship with his creations.
CADAQUÉS SOUL 05
2022, Taiwan smoked bamboo, titan braid thread, leads and steel base. 52 x 52 x 22 cm; 66 cm rotation
MOEBIUS
2021, Taiwan smoked bamboo, titan braid thread, leads and ceramic ball. 180 x 90 x 90 cm; 90 cm rotation
TORNADE (COLLECTION CAP DE CREUS 2019)
2019, Nigra bamboo, titan thread, leads and ceramic base. 107 x 20 x 20 cm
EMPORTÉ PAR LE VENT (COLLECTIÓN CAP DE CREUS, 2019)
2019, Nigra bamboo, titan thread, leads and ceramic base. 107 x 20 x 20 cm
BIG BANG
2023, Taiwan smoked bamboo, fishing net thread and ceramic ball. 175 x 260 x 260 cm; 260 cm rotation
DRAC
2014, Bamboo and thread. 220 x 480 x 100 cm
SHELL
2018, Bamboo and thread. 150 x 170 x 130 cm; 200 cm rotation
If you would like to register on the waiting list for the artworks shown in this exhibition or would like to receive a complete listing of the works available, please contact us at palaudecasavells@alzuetagallery.com.
