Rex Southwick: To Distraction
The title of Rex Southwick鈥檚 latest solo exhibition with Unit is borrowed from Dorothea Tanning鈥檚 expansive 1962 painting, 脡perdument, created after her relocation from America to the South of France in search of creative refuge in 1957.
To Distraction mirrors a journey in search of escape along the C么te d鈥橝zur, which has long attracted artists and architects seeking respite from urban life. This series emerged from Southwick鈥檚 time at an artist residency in one of Jacques Cou毛lle鈥檚 iconic sculptural Landscape Houses above the Bay of Cannes. Southwick鈥檚 large-scale paintings depict a quiet, often mundane 鈥渂ackstage鈥� view of some of the Riviera鈥檚 most notable 鈥� and lesser-known 鈥� architectural dwellings. A recurring theme in his practice is the relationship between individuals and the spaces they inhabit, and how environments influence behaviour.
The works span from the pioneering modernism of the 1920s, exemplified by Villa E-1027, to the exuberant forms of the 1980s, such as the Palais Bulles 鈥� an emblem of the bubble house craze that swept France. For Southwick, the true value of the C么te d鈥橝zur lies in its dense concentration of diverse, high-quality architecture and artistic heritage, packed into a remarkably compact stretch of coast.
The title of Rex Southwick鈥檚 latest solo exhibition with Unit is borrowed from Dorothea Tanning鈥檚 expansive 1962 painting, 脡perdument, created after her relocation from America to the South of France in search of creative refuge in 1957.
To Distraction mirrors a journey in search of escape along the C么te d鈥橝zur, which has long attracted artists and architects seeking respite from urban life. This series emerged from Southwick鈥檚 time at an artist residency in one of Jacques Cou毛lle鈥檚 iconic sculptural Landscape Houses above the Bay of Cannes. Southwick鈥檚 large-scale paintings depict a quiet, often mundane 鈥渂ackstage鈥� view of some of the Riviera鈥檚 most notable 鈥� and lesser-known 鈥� architectural dwellings. A recurring theme in his practice is the relationship between individuals and the spaces they inhabit, and how environments influence behaviour.
The works span from the pioneering modernism of the 1920s, exemplified by Villa E-1027, to the exuberant forms of the 1980s, such as the Palais Bulles 鈥� an emblem of the bubble house craze that swept France. For Southwick, the true value of the C么te d鈥橝zur lies in its dense concentration of diverse, high-quality architecture and artistic heritage, packed into a remarkably compact stretch of coast.
Artists on show
