Celia

Three plastic cans, neon light, transformer
60 x 31 x 7 cm

Culbert’s modernity is fully in line with the 20th century artistic process that has been described through fundamental axes by various artists, from Marcel Duchamp to Kurt Schwitters : connections between the subject and the object come first before the aesthetic qualities. The artwork does not derive from any knowledge but is the result of a concept, a choice, an attitude. The viewer takes part, as the artist does, in the quality of the artwork. Perception becomes a creative act, the medium vanishes and becomes plenty.         

« I swapped from painting to light. At that time, my paintings were only abstract and very simple optical works.. A ray of light that passes through a yellow plastic jug : what a beautiful transparent haze ! Driving a neon through a row of bottles means getting rid of its light value and its function as a jug only to give way to a function that is light/colour ». Extract from an interview with the artist by Yves Abrioux, on the occasion of the publication of Entre chien et loup – Afterdark, 1994.