"Becoming" - 25 Studies from Ghislain Pfersdorff

BECOMING is an immersive installation comprising 25 artworks arranged in a circle, each corresponding to one stanza of Arthur Rimbaud’s “Le Bateau Ivre.” Created over nine years (2016-2025), each work measures 46 x 61 cm and employs a two-stage process: Chinese ink calligraphy transcribing Rimb

Visitors remove their shoes and follow a traced path, physically experiencing the poem’s journey of departure, transformation, and return. 

The installation features ambient audio of French actors Gérard Philippe, Jean Marais, Jean-Louis Trintignant, and Fanny Ardant reciting the poem and alternating French and English, accompanied by Arvo Pärt’s “Spiegel im Spiegel.” 

Limited to a few visitors at a time, the work explores themes of artistic rebellion, political resistance, and psychological transformation while addressing contemporary concerns about polarization and dialogue. The calligraphy-watercolor technique embodies creative doubt—ink providing structur

Submitted as a performance to the 2025 Phillips Collection Art call. 

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