Beauty is not the only angle to approach an object, and to curator Amine Amharech there is always something -perhaps more interesting to uncover in a work of art. Built into art there are elements of novelty, context, dynamism, and nuance. The established curator is a multilingual trained architect that hails from Morocco and calls the Marais in Paris home. His projects are sensuous, they remind viewers of the touching that happens between man and design. As a trained architect at the Special School of Architecture in Paris and the Southern California Institute of Architecture in Los Angeles, Amharech calls attention to the forces that cradle us and is committed to exploring aesthetics that uphold flow.
Mid to late century psychologist James Gibson coined the term ‘optical flow’. Influenced by Gestalts, Gibson is well known for taking an ecological approach towards his observations on the visual system and top down processing. His body of work has impacted both cognitive psychology’s and artistic direction’s understanding of human awareness by suggesting that the mind is directly perceiving the environment. EON, Amine’s artistic moniker, agrees with Gibson’s concept that perception is not separate from acting. In EON’s eyes meaning is not extracted from perceptual processes but there is an essence of what it means to perceive. Thus optic flow shows the richness of sensory information and that the patterns of motion in light traveling through the optic system are actually the dance between the observer and the object.
It is through the interaction effects of a constantly moving viewer in an ever-changing environment that movement manipulates the pattern of light reaching our eyes. It is in this space that Amine seeks to intervene and guide through design and curation. Amine investigates optic arrays between expertise and explosion, form and justification. Often his curatorial approach includes pieces that trigger movement perceptual centers in our brain, or requires multi-angled viewpoints be it all around or various levels of zoom. Additionally, because clothing is -ultimately structural and 3-dimensional, EON often incorporates high fashion as an extension of interactive architecture into his repertoire. His next exhibition “ARMORS” will be an art and fashion statement building on sculpture in garments.
Each selection a viewer encounter’s in Amine’s exhibitions goes through his process of mapping cultural, social, economic, political, and technological context to a contemporary situation. There is an inherent emotional volatility that escapes from the motion. The world is always spinning but we are too busy feeling. EON’s curatorial aims seek to tether our consciousness back to the chaos of the world around us and excavate our -feeling within it—even if we are not aware we too are in a state of movement. The emotional truths don’t just become the forefront but an organising principle that is simultaneously personally isolated but historically bound and sociologically uncovered but technologically reproduced.
Flow denotes non conforming but contains discipline, just like the curator himself. His interest in flow begins with embodiment, since childhood he has been trained in martial arts, fencing, and has an inclination for dancing. Furthermore, EON also has an artistic production practice where he creates works of art that serve as manifestos for his observations on movement. His art practice ranges from volcanoes of pigment on canvas to murano glass rocks that reflect power. Building upon these practices, whilst in Los Angeles Amharech studied under Thomas Maybe, a founder of Morphosis an architecture firm. The tenants of Morphisis were the subversion of traditional design in favor of architecture that reflects back culture. Amine’s three exhibitions curated for L’Eclaireur Paris through 2022 were reflections of Morphosis’ idealisms that involved tables, chairs, and monsters.
As a collaborator Amharech’s portfolio of projects have global and structural range. His large-scale projects include collaborations with Bernard Tschumi and Zaha Hadid, executing a Fiat and Chrysler village in Morocco, scenography and art installations for the Opera of Monaco and Opera of Antwerp. He has crafted intimate encounters in curated design exhibitions such as his intervention exhibition series with L’Eclaireur. Furthermore, EON’s expertise has been utilised as an artistic director for one of Africa’s leading contemporary art galleries Artspace Casablanca in 2018 and 2022. As well as in 2020 as the Middle East and Parisian brand consultant for ‘In art we trust’. While we can expect to see more fashion driven exhibitions from Amine, EON’s upcoming project also includes the art scenography for the Opera of Geneva.
