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DCA Gallerie during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red kayak can be seen in the middle of the room, along with a red tent.

Roman Signer

Installations

04 July - 20 September 2015

Kayaks, cannons and catapults were all employed by the internationally renowned artist Roman Signer for his solo exhibition at DCA in summer 2015.

In a career spanning more than four decades, Signer has become synonymous with playful actions exploring chance, space and time. This exhibition focuses upon a series of works concerned with the aftermath of these actions, or with their potential to take place.

DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. a steel cannon is pointed at an open tent

The first gallery is given over to a single work in which the artist has attempted to knock over a grid of standing wooden posts. Viewers are able to walk around the precarious installation.

Kayaks are a recurring motif in Signer’s work, and two of these appear in the main gallery. One has been launched into the wall of the gallery using a catapult, released after a candle burnt through a rope. The resulting debris will be left untouched throughout the exhibition’s run. A second kayak artwork sees the boat filled with over 200 litres of whisky donated by William Grant and Sons Ltd, in a strange and playful reversal of the vessel’s usual relationship with water. In other works, a steel cannon is pointed at an open tent and bottles of whisky are suspended on strings and blown in circles by electrical fans.

Roman Signer was born in Appenzell, Switzerland, in 1938. He studied at the Schule für Gestaltung, Zurich, in 1966, the Schule für Gestaltung, Lucerne, between 1969 – 1971 and at the Academy of Fine Arts, Warsaw, from 1971 – 1972. He lives and works in St. Gallen.

Presented in association with the Barbican. Exhibition supported by Pro Helvetia, with thanks to Galerie Hauser & Wirth and William Grant and Sons Ltd.

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DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. a steel cannon is pointed at an open tent

Artist Interview | Roman Signer on Installations

Roman Signer: Exhibition Notes

Click here to download the Exhibition Notes for Roman Signer: Installations.
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Exhibition images

DCA Gallerie during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red kayak can be seen in the middle of the room, along with a red tent.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. Electric fan, which are facing skyward, blow beneath glass bottles tied by string from the ceiling. A red tent and a red kayak can be seen in the background.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red tent can be seen in the middle of the room.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. Electric fan, which are facing skyward, blow beneath glass bottles tied by string from the ceiling. Next to these, we can see a red kayak.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. a steel cannon is pointed at an open tent
DCA during Roman Signer's exhibition. Plywood plinths stand upright in the gallery. Some have fallen over like dominos.
DCA Gallerie during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red kayak can be seen in the middle of the room, along with a red tent.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. Electric fan, which are facing skyward, blow beneath glass bottles tied by string from the ceiling. A red tent and a red kayak can be seen in the background.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red tent can be seen in the middle of the room.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. Electric fan, which are facing skyward, blow beneath glass bottles tied by string from the ceiling. Next to these, we can see a red kayak.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. a steel cannon is pointed at an open tent
DCA during Roman Signer's exhibition. Plywood plinths stand upright in the gallery. Some have fallen over like dominos.
DCA Gallerie during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red kayak can be seen in the middle of the room, along with a red tent.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. Electric fan, which are facing skyward, blow beneath glass bottles tied by string from the ceiling. A red tent and a red kayak can be seen in the background.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. A red tent can be seen in the middle of the room.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. Electric fan, which are facing skyward, blow beneath glass bottles tied by string from the ceiling. Next to these, we can see a red kayak.
DCA Galleries during Roman Signer's exhibition. a steel cannon is pointed at an open tent
DCA during Roman Signer's exhibition. Plywood plinths stand upright in the gallery. Some have fallen over like dominos.