Internal time

Richard Meier

It is against a white surface that one best appriciates the play of light and shadow, solid and voids

Richard Meier

Following on from John Pawson, the Bisazza Foundation devoted its second temporary exhibition in 2013 to another architect – the 1984 Pritzker Architecture Prize winner, Richard Meier, whose best-known buildings include the Smith House in Connecticut, the Getty Center in Los Angeles, and the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art.

A major European retrospective, the show marked the 50th anniversary of Meier’s New York-based practice and included 16 models, more than 30 technical drawings, 40 photos and preliminary sketches, and less-known design objects, such as the tableware collection he created for Reed & Barton in collaboration with Swid Powell. It also marked the unveiling of a site-specific installation entitled Internal Time, especially conceived for the Foundation’s permanent collection. Drawing on Meier’s signature absence of colour, it resembles a stylized wood made up of slanting vertical elements and one horizontal bench, covered uniquely in white mosaic.

This installation is not necessarily just an object on display in the gallery. It is designed based on the context of the space, the structure of the building and the views to the garden. The design of the installation consists of a series of columns whose geometries gradually angle in one dimension, and as the user moves around the ‘garden’ they will experience different qualities of compression and expansion, and changes in light and perspective. Natural light is the most fundamental element central to our work and we hope this installation creates an immersive and intimate experience at the Bisazza Foundation.

Richard Meier