Jean-Michel Othoniel enchants Shanghai with glass, light, and memory

At the Long Museum in Shanghai, Jean-Michel Othoniel presents a body of work that unites two iconic elements of his visual language: monumental glass beads and blown glass bricks. Created between 2012 and today, these works reflect an “emotional geometry” that moves through spirituality, history, and the human body. The beads - far too large to be worn - evoke dance, prayer, and memory, the bricks, each slightly different, resemble luminous pixels from an architectural dream. Light, reflection, and transparency transform the museum’s Brutalist architecture into a dreamlike landscape. Each piece, handcrafted by Italian and Indian artisans, radiates a precious sensuality and a near-jewel-like allure, where luxury becomes a poetic language. From the red necklaces created for the 1997 Pride in memory of Félix González-Torres to permanent installations in Qatar and Versailles, Othoniel builds a dialogue between the intimate and the monumental. His works do not seek answers but shared desires, becoming thresholds between the visible and invisible, between reality and enchantment.