The exhibition Better Views is presented by artists Louis Jacquot and Kyveli Zoi, and takes place on two floors of an unfinished villa on the island of Hydra. Open to the elements, with rough concrete surfaces and uncovered openings, the space frames the artworks in ever-changing light, sea and sky – making the viewing experience a process of constant flow and activity.
On the first floor, Kyveli Zoi presents a series of mini oil paintings that explore the relationship between viewer and spectacle. Each point in the space is utilized by the framed windows – to suggest a hypothetical interior environment, brought to life by the playful perspectives of atmospheric details and imaginary spectators. The contrast between the delicate, introspective works and the stark, unfinished architecture challenges the viewer to become part of a multi-layered visual dialogue between reality, imagination and perception.
On the second floor, Louis Jacquot presents mirror works: postcard-sized panels, hand-cut, covered with thick, painted textures of acrylic and polyurethane. Derived from his sketches, the abstract patterns seem to float on the surface, like mercury or molten lead. The mirrors break up space, diffusing light and absorbing – rather than reflecting – offering fragmentary images of the viewer, the building and the island in ever-changing combinations.
Better Views is based on a hospitality exchange: the Paris-based Louis Jacquot created his works during a residency at KYAN, the hospitality program founded by Kyveli Zoi in Athens. At the same time, Kyveli, based in Athens, created her own series of works during two months of work in Paris last spring. The exhibition has been organized and produced independently, outside of galleries or institutions, as a collaboration between the two artists – reflecting a shared interest in issues of surface, perception and the changing nature of the image. Together, the two artists explore how space, material and point of view intersect – and how the act of viewing can be both familiar and disorienting.
The Artists’ Bios:
Louis Jacquot
www.louisjacquotstudio.com/bio
Louis Jacquot lives and works in Paris. He is a graduate of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. His paintings are often derived from sketches he creates from life, capturing fragments of space and everyday gestures. Using mixed techniques – such as acrylics, industrial paint, transfers and prints – he creates open, tense surfaces where the gaze remains mobile and unstable. Placing his works within existing architecture – whether public, vernacular or monumental – is central to his process. At the same time, she develops an experimental painting practice that focuses on perception, visual memory, and the relationship between body, object and space. His work explores the materiality of surfaces (cotton canvas dyed blue, mirror, glass, etc.) and uses reflection as a tool to shift, fragment and enhance attention to the world. She has exhibited internationally in cities such as Paris, Seoul, Milan and San Sebastian, and will soon present a work specifically designed for the Biblioteca Vasconcelos space in Mexico City, combining large-scale painting, site-specific drawing and participatory workshops. His residencies at Fonds de dotation Weiss (Paris), Gate 44 (Milan), Double Séjour (Clichy) and Kyan (Athens) support a practice rooted in movement, active observation and exchange with places and their inhabitants.
Kyveli Zoi
Kyveli Zoi is a painter who lives and works in Athens. Influenced by her multicultural background, she creates in her works dreamlike situations that highlight the connection between human communities regardless of borders, as well as the wider natural environment. Often inspired by music, social struggles and history, her visual language is characterized by an intense theatricality that focuses on the details that transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. Cybele has participated in numerous group and solo exhibitions internationally, in cities such as New York, Paris, London, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Istanbul, Brussels, Naples and Athens. Her collaborations range from galleries and collectors to film and theatre directors such as George Panousopoulos, as well as with musicians and designers such as Matteo Tamburini (TOD’S) and Rachele Regini (DIOR). She was awarded the 2021-2022 Stavros Niarchos Foundation Artist Fellowship. She is the founder of KYAN, an artist residency program in Athens, Greece.
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