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Règne artificiel IV [RA IV] (2019-2020)
Règne artificiel IV (Artificial Kingdom IV) [RA IV] is part of the Règnes artificiels (Artificial Kingdoms) corpus, a series of immersive installations through which Gagné explores the boundary between natural and artificial life forms. This recent iteration is composed of a multitude of inflatable electroluminescent cells, animated by a slight expansion-contraction movement that evokes respiration. The whole unfolds in space like a school of jellyfish. The presence of visitors in this artificial ecosystem leads to chain reactions that result in changes in the “respiratory rhythm,” as well as fluctuations in light intensity. Formally inspired by the organisms found in the abyssal pits, the different modules display a resolutely organic character but are paradoxically made of plastic, then animated by means of electronic and mechanical devices.
Bio:
Originally from Quebec, Rosalie Dumont Gagné has been active in the visual arts community for nearly 20 years. In 2007, during her studies at Concordia University, she began to integrate digital processes into her research and works. Interested in creating sensory and perceptual experiences, Gagné creates immersive sculptural installations and designs responsive environments. Having presented her work in Canada, Mexico and Europe, D. Gagné currently lives in Montreal. She is a member of the artist centre Perte de signal and divides her time between teaching visual arts and her practice. Her approach is rooted in the phenomenology of matter and perception. In her propositions, she is interested in the relationship between microcosm and macrocosm, in the links between our individual and collective aspirations, as well as in technology and Nature. R. D. Gagné defines her approach to art by establishing a set of parameters with which she works for a certain period of time; thus finding herself with the rules of an exercise reminiscent of the empirical method. For more than five years, her practice has led her to work with a combination of metal structures and blown glass to make objects that evoke the instruments of a fictional laboratory. Often taking the form of receptacles, these sculptures contain water, aquatic plants and other forms of life. Her more recent production, while continuing with her initial practice, incorporates the use of the digital and malleable and inflatable materials with which she creates site-adaptive objects that react to the comings and goings of visitors. Inspired by bio-mimicry; these works imitate natural phenomena through the use of artificial materials and systems. From this paradox tends to emerge an atmosphere of mysterious beauty, both strange and familiar. (uncanny atmosphere).
