Benoît. Painted faces on a tiled wall in a metro station. Endless black scribbles as wallpaper in a city hall. Colourful paved compositions that break the linearity of a city square. Figures scraped in the plaster walls of a staircase. Works of art that are inseparable components of buildings, rooms, spaces. Works created by artist, drawer, painter, Benoît van Innis (1960-2024). In his work he has explored a place for art within architecture - in a way not done before.
Interdisciplinary. Benoît’s oeuvre can be seen as exemplary of art in architecture as a discipline. An interdisciplinary practice that is still little researched and discussed. We want to capture this work - as a legacy of objects, images, documents, stories. A legacy that presents the diversity of his Benoît's practice. A legacy that informs on the craftsmanship and expertise needed to master art in architecture as a discipline. A legacy that can be of inspiration to others, that can enhance the dialogue and collaboration between architecture and art.
Inventory. We know of most of the executed works, but the process behind them is scattered or unknown. It is the main reason why The Chair of Affective Architectures initiates a research on the work of Benoît in architecture. The research can be seen as a big inventory – showing not only the final result, but the whole work process behind it, starting from the first sketch. A process in which we need to search, dig, organize, reflect. We reach out to architects, clients, producers as valuable witnesses of his work process, to gather their stories. A selection of the research outcome will be captured in a book publication.