“ Alain had one of the most generous spirits of anyone I knew.

It was expressed in his art, the dinners he and Ariane Lopez-Huici hosted in their Tribeca loft, and in the multi-media events that took place there. I have long been a believer in the blending of the arts, so long as it is done with discrimination and a healthy dose of improvisation. The arts flourished in their loft. In particular, I was impressed by the evenings highlighting intersections between visual art and music, especially jazz. Alain was a connoisseur of many things, and the intelligence he and Ariane brought to these soirées remains inspiring, years or decades after the last note has died out, and the art has moved on to other abodes. In particular, the way they presented art, it never seemed to be about abstraction. The careful juxtapositions, the love and delicacy shared in those evenings, did not pit one thing against another, but rather brought us all together.

When I think of Alain’s sculpture now, its snaky lines and provocatively painted forms, I don’t see them as abstract, but rather as life-forms, in just the same way a soprano saxophone solo by John Coltrane can be.”

Vincent Katz

In Memoriam, A Tribute to Alain Kirili (1946–2021) , Brooklyn Rail