Joel Shapiro: 20 Elements

Joel Shapiro, the eminent sculptor, was invited by the Musée d'Orsay in Paris to participate in their project series titled 'Correspondences'. The Orsay is a museum with an exceptional collection dedicated to 19th century art. The aim of 'Correspondences' is to achieve new insights into the complexity of art through confronting some of the museum's masterpieces with ambitious contemporary works. Shapiro initially felt that a wax figure of a dancer by Degas would be an appropriate match for one of his own figures, but then opted for Jean Baptiste Carpeaux's 'La Danse,' a large-scale manifestation of human sensuality which once adorned the exterior of the Paris Opera. The sculpture had caused a major scandal in its time and is said to have influenced Rodin a generation later. The abandon of Carpeaux's six dancing figures gives a vivid sense of ecstatic human movement. Shapiro achieves the same through abstract means. His bold construction consisting of 20 wooden elements painted in ultra