Pablo Reinoso (b. 1955, Buenos Aires) is a French- Argentinian artist who has lived and worked in Paris since 1978. His interdisciplinary practice spans across sculpture, installation, design, video and architecture, and is informed by an ongoing reflection on the relationship between art and functionality.
In his earliest sculptural pieces, this critical and creative approach translated into works that interrogated the notions of materiality and movement: with Articulations, (1970-onwards), a series of works inspired by human anatomy, the artist turned wood into a flexible material, one that allowed him to create mobile-like sculptures. In the 1990s, he developed his Breathing Works. Through these minimalist installations, most often presented through ensembles of black monochromes, the universal yet unconscious act of breathing is made possible through a man-made support that allows the whole system to work. These works also speak about the interdependence between natural and artificial elements, one of the recurring themes in Pablo Reinoso’s work.
The notion of functionality is also at the heart of the series Thoneteando (2005-onwards), inspired by the design of the Thonet chair 14. Here, the artist’s material is an iconic seating object, divested of its primary function: the chairs acquire an absurd symbolism as the artist articulates visual narratives and choreographies with them.
Through his more recent works, including the Spaghetti Benches and the Garabatos, Pablo Reinoso continues to question the very nature of the materials he works with, striving to constantly redefine their limits. Benches climbing upwards and growing sideways evoke the ramification of natural life and organic curves move freely in the space surrounding them.
The artist’s oevre revolves around our relationship with the natural world and often suggests a possible solution to the existing tension by combining man-made and natural elements.
Pablo Reinoso’s most recent production is also deeply rooted in public spaces: across both urban and natural settings, his works create new openings and occasions for exchanges, conversations and unexpected encounters. The artist has created site-specific works across various international locations, most notably in London (The Ark, 2019), Buenos Aires (Aires de Buenos Aires, 2019) and Busan (Busan Infinity Line, 2019). He has imagined a new bench, titled Social Distance Bench (2020), allowing users to share public spaces within the context of the Covid-19 health crisis.
Several renowned international collections have works by Reinoso: Museum of Modern Art of Buenos Aires, Fonds National d’Art Contemporain (Paris, France), Museum of Modern Art of São Paulo, MACRO (Rosario, Argentina), MUSAC (Léon, Spain) and Malba (Buenos Aires, Argentina).
In addition to group exhibitions in New York, Shanghai, Vienna, and Copenhagen among others, he had solo exhibitions in London, Paris, Brussels, Madrid, Tokio, Cannes, Bogotá, Toulouse, Hamburg, Punta del Este, and Buenos Aires.