Francois Morellet Sens Dessus Dessous

The French government contracted the Public Art Fund to assist them in commissioning a mural in honor of the centennial of the Statue of Liberty. The commission is part of a cultural exchange between the governments of the United States and France. After reviewing 20 proposals, geometric abstractionist Francois Morellet was accepted by a panel that included representatives from the Art Commission, the French Embassy, and the Department of City Planning. The Minimalist mural consists of three stark diagonal lines jutting across the blank wall. Morellet explains that the mural was intended to “imperceptibly modify, rather than assault, the landscape.” He added that, “distracted passersby will see practically no change while the careful observer may notice the little something new that swings the formerly ordinary view into another more ambiguous logic.”