Signed on the plinth's inside, titled on the plinth. Unique work.
The metamorphosis of objects from the world of consumerism, art or daily life, which are inscribed in the collective memory of the Western world, is a feature of Wim Delvoye's works. However, his levelling of "high" and "low" in terms of a rearrangement of an established vocabulary of forms from the classic canon of art history, does not lead to a negation of art, but to an affirmation of the object and the work of art, which in itself has no use, except that of just being art.
Delvoye wittily undermines the clichés of iconography and forces the viewer to change his accustomed way of seeing. In the series "Twisted", Delvoye has made 3D-scans of baroque sculptures and twisted them digitally, usually around the apex - either clockwise or counter clockwise.
For the sculpture "Le secret" Delvoye has been inspired by the eponymous sculpture of Auguste Moreau (1834-1917). However, that is not really a baroque sculpture, but rather a tacky homey adaption of the vocabulary of baroque imagery, typical of the late 19th century. This "copy" is still mass produced today as a copy "after Moreau".
Delvoye actually re-transfers the sculpture into a classic motif, however, it presents itself in a completely un-classic way: The children whispering a secret into each other's ear have become the lovers Amor and Psyche, the heads, turned towards each other, the centre of the rotation, have become a suggested kiss. Delvoye turns the tawdry version of a mainstream image of baroque again into a work of art, opening up possibilities of reflexion on the art of baroque as well as its epigones.
