Delphine Grandvaux

My approach

Mesh sculptures allow themselves a great deal of freedom. Suspended, placed on or against a wall, they leap up, brush against and marry each other in an ever-changing interplay of balance and harmony. Their transparency gives a glimpse of an inner space, a breathing space where the work plays with light and shadow according to its exposure.

As a pianist from an early age, I find an echo of music in each of my sculptures. Movement, space, rhythm, harmony, precision of gesture and construction. Everything comes together and merges, leaving room for an artistic phrase that evokes things more than it defines them, appealing to the sensibility of each individual.

I often work by instinct. When an idea comes to me, I give it the time it needs to mature, without constraint, sometimes for several months if need be. Time then becomes an abstract notion, and I sometimes work on several pieces at once. This alternating work is like a breath of fresh air that allows me to find the right way to finish a work.

It’s also a time for research and discovery, which gives a much-needed sense of freedom. Each work leads to another and becomes a practice in movement, always curious about what’s to come. Alongside my work as a piano teacher, it’s a way of expressing myself that brings me closer to others and meets a need to tell the ‘present’ with delicacy and poetry.

Knitting technique

This technique, known as Viking knit, is originally an ancient method of weaving yarn used to make jewellery or containers, but it was through the work of artist Ruth Asawa that its use developed into the creation of contemporary sculptures.

Each stitch is created by hand from a spool of wire. I join them together through a series of meticulous gestures to create a volume, which is then shaped by the number and size of the stitches, as well as by the choice of yarn and its diameter.

Meshwork explores the singular character of metal wire, constantly pushing back its limits. At once raw and refined, supple and rigid, it becomes a precious link of great finesse in the creation of supple, light and transparent sculptures. This practice requires a long and repetitive creative process, but that’s also part of the pleasure and magic I feel when, starting with a wire, I see volumes come to life.