Patricia Glave

Born in 1960, Basel, Switzerland

2007-2008 Geneva University of Art and Design, Switzerland

Since 2001 Teaches at the School of applied arts, ceramics section, CEPV, Vevey, Switzerland

1988-1989 Art Student League, New York, NY

Since 1985 Workshops in Lausanne, Switzerland and New York, NY

1980-1984 School of applied arts, Vevey, Switzerland

1993 Jury prize, ACS biennale, Ariana Museum, Geneva, Switzerland

1990 Medal of honor, International Ceramics Festival, Mino, Japan

1990 Medal of honor, Triennal of Zagreb, Croatia

1989 Schneider’s National Award, Chicago, IL

Patricia Glave’s works, objects and installations are always related to the body. They are a symbolic representation of it, or are always suggestive of it in one way or another, with a delicate sensitivity, as in her drawings on the theme of body hair and hair or her gourds, images of the maternal breast, or with a surprising force, as in some of her installations made up of components that look virtually faecal, which she piles up or sets out in large areas, giving them the appearance of human silhouettes. These constituent “components”, always the same, are made from raw clay simply pressed in the palm of the hand and fired at low temperature in a smoky atmosphere. This simple production method, the result of a rudimentary, primary technique, has a surprising, disconcerting visual effectiveness.

Just as effective is the installation and all the works that she has offered to present at the Favardin & de Verneuil Gallery. Firstly, on the wall, there will be weapons presented ostentatiously, as in an armoury (an almost idiotic ostentation that is so common and so widely accepted in such cases). Their grotesque, excremental, sexual — phallic —
appearance tells us everything about how foolish our aggressive, violent relationships with others are. Is not violence, like our excrement, just a foolish, inevitable, natural emanation of our body?

This installation is accompanied by pieces in which there is an obvious reference to everything that is fragile and bruised about the body. Large numbers of ambiguous, assembled protuberances — prematurely sacrificed fruit — reminiscent of mammary glands, are accompanied by a puddle of black resin — or it may be blood or ink — that tells us of the wounds and human dramas that our constantly enacted before our eyes.

Yves Peltier