Joana Vasconcelos's 'Simone' Takes Over Le Bon Marché

Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos (b. 1971) has created a monumental site-specific installation titled 'Simone' at Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche in Paris, on view until March 24, 2019. The work is suspended from the central skylights, enveloping the escalators with tentacle-like extensions made from crocheted wool, recycled fabrics, ornaments, trimmings, inflatables, LEDs, polyester, and steel cables. Despite Vasconcelos's usual vibrant palette, 'Simone' is entirely white, conceived as a tribute to French writers and activists Simone de Beauvoir and Simone Weil. Le Bon Marché, one of the world's first department stores opened in the mid-19th century, annually invites international artists to create new works in situ; previous participants include Ai Weiwei (2016), Chiharu Shiota (2017), and Leandro Erlich (2018). Vasconcelos gained international recognition after her participation in the 51st Venice Biennale in 2005 with 'A Noiva (The Bride)'. In 2012, she became the youngest artist and first woman to exhibit at the Palace of Versailles. Her recent solo show at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao concluded in November 2018, where she dialogued with Frank Gehry's atrium.