Le défi, 2026

Florian Streit  

Streit was born in Switzerland. He studied art at the Schools of Design in Zurich and Basel. Since then, he has held numerous exhibitions both at home and abroad. He works in both two and three dimensions. 

Three aspects can be identified in his paintings: the first relates to the actual content, the subject matter. This is determined by the borrowed modular forms drawn from his three-dimensional aluminium sculptures. Clear geometric shapes emerge on the canvas, sometimes arranged in an almost symmetrical manner, sometimes spreading playfully across the surface.

The second aspect involves amorphous patches. The rigid figures that relate to the leitmotif are embedded in a multidimensional, informal interweaving – a fabric of structures.

The informal also often appears at the forefront as a brushstroke (3rd aspect) – an energetic gesture. This seems to challenge the geometry, almost destroying it, deconstructing it. The apparent irreconcilability of freely circulating elements (streaks of colour) and rationally composed elements comes together as a synthesis in the deconstruction.

The conventional arrangement of background and foreground, which has prevailed for centuries, is radically challenged. A non-perspectival sense of spatial depth emerges. The resulting interplay of order and chaos struggles for dominance, but is ultimately brought into balance.

Streit's aim is not to depict beauty but to broaden sensory perception. The viewer is challenged to actively observe and analyse the image, and to perceive it in a positive light.