Porte-Manteau

A single line, wrought in metal, becomes a human profile. Turn it slightly and the character of the profile changes, from angry to pensive, from surprised to sullen. Made of the humblest material, recycled wire hangers, Gilles Collette's Porte-manteau sculptures combine wire, light, space and the viewer's vantage point to form quasi-kinetic portraits. From the primordial line emerges a multitude of shapes and expressions, delicately delineated in space, forming the thin separation between absence and fullness of form. Expressive portraits from one viewpoint, some of the figures become abstract from another: arabesques in light and shadow, dancing figures, fantastic flora. Some portraits change genders from one shot to the next; others emerge from what appeared to be a straight line...