Takis (artist)

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Takis
Light signals in the Le Bassin Takis fountain in La Défense west of Paris

Takis ( Greek Τάκης , originally Panagiótis Vasilákis, Παναγιώτης Βασιλάκης , born October 29, 1925 in Athens , Greece ; † August 9, 2019 ) was a Greek sculptor and representative of kinetic art who lived and worked in Paris , Athens and London . His stage name is a common short form of his first name.

life and work

Takis was a self-taught artist . He replaced his studies with intensive study trips across Europe . In 1946 he created his first sculptural works. From 1953 to 1954 he stayed in London. From 1955 he lived mainly in Paris.

Takis began to occupy himself with archaic art and initially created figurative sculptures. After 1955 he began to deal with kinetic art. In 1959 he exhibited with Iris Clert in Paris and one year later with Alexander Iolas in New York.

From 1960 he started work based on magnetism . Takis wanted to visualize invisible forces. Many of his works are antenna-like long sculptures. They consist, for example, of a thin rod with an electromagnet on the tip, which uses magnetic force to generate vibrating movements. He also investigated the effect of light as a form of electromagnetic energy in other works. He called this work light signals.

From 1965 he developed musical sculptures. With these objects, sounds are generated by moving needles that vibrate through magnetic forces. Since the 1970s, he expanded this work into environments : musical spaces.

Takis became known as a sculptor, object artist , installation and performance artist. In 1968 he was invited as a participating artist to the 4th documenta in Kassel and also to documenta 6 in 1977.

Literature and Sources

  • Exhibition catalog for the IV. Documenta: IV. Documenta. International exhibition ; Catalog: Volume 1: (Painting and Sculpture); Volume 2: (Graphics / Objects); Kassel 1968
  • Busch, Julia M., A Decade of Sculpture: the New Media in the 1960's , The Art Alliance Press: Philadelphia; Associated University Presses: London, 1974, ISBN 0-87982-007-1
  • Catalog for documenta 6: Volume 1: Painting, sculpture / environment, performance; Volume 2: photography, film, video; Volume 3: Hand drawings, utopian design, books; Kassel 1977 ISBN 3-920453-00-X
  • Kimpel, Harald / Stengel, Karin: documenta IV 1968 International Exhibition - A Photographic Reconstruction (series of publications from the documenta archive); Bremen 2007, ISBN 978-3-86108-524-9

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Takis
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Vassilakis, Panayotis (maiden name); Βασιλάκης, Παναγιώτης Τάκης (full name, Greek); Βασιλάκης, Παναγιώτης (Greek); Takis, Vassilakis; Vasilakis, Panagiotis Takis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Greek sculptor and kinetic artist
DATE OF BIRTH October 29, 1925
PLACE OF BIRTH Athens , Greece
DATE OF DEATH August 9, 2019