He is interested in the quality that is provoked by accident or the unintentional. He sees the potential in the reactivation of objects towards a usage for which they were not initially meant. For example, for his latest series, he was inspired by pre-existing forms, such as plastic bottles, containers for snacks, salads, etc. These packages are for him symptomatic of an era that is in search for speed. Designed and produced most of the time in China, these packages are circulating the entire planet and are discarded after use.
His works find themselves exploring the problematics of memory, archeology and anticipation. Offhause mainly works in the medium of sculpture and installation, with a strong attraction for ceramics and architecture. He also uses materials other than ceramic depending on his research, such as glass, plexiglass, metal, wax, bread, sugar ... In fact, the border between art and design remains unclear in his work.
I am considering the way the brain functions when it is recalling a visual memory. We always have the impression that we remember something very precisely. But I think this is wrong because our brain is often subject to memory loss and it's our brain which reconstructs an other image. I often ask myself which shapes stay in our memories.”
Yusuké Y. Offhause is a Franco-Japanese artist, living and working between Paris, Tokyo and Geneva.
His work explores the notion of imperfection, yet thought of as the inverse of the common idea of default or failure. The word “imperfection” is often negatively connoted with terms such as: default, bad, waste, fault, vice. Offhause thinks that imperfection can be positively used as a source of creation and in playing an aesthetic role.
He transforms this type of banal form into a sort of fossil or archeological discovery, possibly from our future, permitting us to read or revisit them in another manner.
He introduces a heterogeneous material, granular, composite, reminiscent of oxidized iron or archaeological remains underwater. The plastic shell is taken as a mold in which he blend material that he prepared by mixing various clays crushed to different degrees. Two firings and a glaze which solidifies completes the object, which then takes the strange appearance of a strange piece that is difficult to date, archaic and futuristic all at once.
“Food creates a gathering place around a table and a space for sharing. I would like an art or design exhibition to also offer a space for discussion. The art of the table would be an ideal way to create a sharing between diverse people such as chefs, creators and visitors.”
