Rachel Valinsky invites seven artists from both sides of the Atlantic to share their views of Guy de Cointet, with contributions by Davide Balula, Eva Barto, Julie Béna, Jesse Chun, Jean-Pascal Flavien, Gordon Hall, Alan Reid.

Guy de Cointet was fascinated with language, which he explored primarily through performance and drawing. His practice involved collecting random phrases, words, and even single letters from popular culture and literary sources—he often cited Raymond Roussel’s novel Impressions of Africa as influential—and working these elements into non-linear narratives, which were presented as plays to his audience.

Produced on the occasion of THROUGH AND THROUGH AND THROUGH, an exhibition of new work by Gordon Hall, curated by Roya Amirsoleymani and Kristan Kennedy, commissioned and presented by the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art in Portland, Oregon from 8 June–10 August, 2019.

With contributions by Roya Amirsoleymani, Kristan Kennedy, Sarah Workneh, Elizabeth Orr, Kristin Poor, Daniel Quiles, Colin Self, Maggie Ginestra, Orlando Tirado, David J. Getsy, Yuri Stone. Designed by Gary Robbins.

The Number of Inches Between Them continues a body of work in which Hall creates replicas of found, one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture. The replicas refer to objects Hall has encountered by chance and feels a magnetic attraction to, furniture that the artist wants to investigate physically through remaking. The Number of Inches Between Them doubles a geometric stone bench happened upon in a friend’s backyard in 2016. The replication is done twice: first as eight cast concrete interlocking panels that are shown assembled as a twin of the bench, and second as the same set of eight concrete panels presented disassembled and leaning against the walls of the gallery.