Des Vaches: Mo, Ni, Que 1976

Editor: Today we're looking at "Des Vaches: Mo, Ni, Que," a 1976 installation artwork by Samuel Buri. What strikes me is the slightly surreal nature of seeing these cows, so naturalistic in form, yet patterned in bright, whimsical polka dots by the edge of the water. What do you make of this encounter, seeing these sculptures nestled in the environment? Curator: Oh, this piece! It always feels like stepping into a slightly off-kilter fairytale. For me, it’s Buri playing with our expectations of both art and nature. The polka dots…they aren't just decorative; they’re a commentary. What is 'natural', and what is 'artificial', when you put them together in the same frame, so to speak? Buri is almost suggesting the modern human need to manipulate and re-imagine the pastoral landscape, a landscape many view with nostalgia but rarely with the realism that comes from engaging directly with its cycles. Editor: So it's less about celebrating rural life and more about questioning our romantic ideas about it? Curator: Precisely! Each time I'm drawn into pondering those spots, I ask myself are they disruptive, an integration or, dare I say, a beautification? Buri certainly has us question what we deem attractive and if it might just be in the eye of the culture beholder. Plus, think of those mirrored reflections; how interesting they play on surface appearances, no? Editor: Yes, that reflection deepens that dreamlike quality. I see the art reflecting the environment in abstract colorful hues...it almost seems as though our vision has adapted and that is the proper reality! Thank you—that's given me a lot to consider. Curator: It does that for me too! Buri’s playful interventions invite a more complex reflection on what we expect from our surroundings, both real and imagined, I'd venture.