attraverso la veduta, ombre si muovono [EN]

Elshopo’s contribution to Veduta on the market: Serigraphies on pancakes.

The program “Veduta” (about this word) takes place for the second time in the scope of the Lyon Biennale. It consists in events such as artists residences, concerts, lectures (etc) happening in special spots of the public space: a market, a swimming pool (etc)
In the 2007 statement, (seek in the left column: “Biennale related events”>”Veduta”), this special section of the biennale was introduced as a “system of research and experimentation”, “an anthropological scrutiny of Contemporary Art within a global history of visual production”. The aim was quite clear: apart from the international show, this series of events in the city would promote a ‘local’ scene and reach the inhabitants of the city – who would not spontaneously visit the devoted spaces of the show.

Franck Scurti, What is public sculpture ? 2006, painted aluminium 200 x 200 x 300 cm.

In the description text of the 2009 edition, the project is described as a coherent part of the biennale, considering its theoretical basis. Veduta was even conceived in five categories, “making, eating, inhabiting, talking about and thinking about… contemporary art”, reminders of Michel de Certeau’s Practice of Everyday Life (forming, together with Guy Debord’s Society of the Spectacle, the portemanteau title of the whole show, “The Spectacle of the Everyday”).
Eventually, in the curator’s interview, Hou Hanru would assume Veduta is one of the five other ‘pillars’ of the biennale called “Living together”, “Another World is possible”, “The Magic of Things or the Reinvention of the Everyday”, “Celebrating the drift”. “Close in spirit to the last-mentioned [pillar, "Another World is Possible"] is the project called Veduta, which stands the usual art situation on its head. Instead of bringing the public to the works of art, it brings the works to the public, and does so in neighbourhoods undergoing urban regeneration. Veduta is the Biennial on your doorstep: with brand new contemporary art experiences we’re trying to set up a dialogue so people can talk about art – or simply just look at it”, Hou Hanru says.

In 1949, Arnhem city, close to Amsterdam, was the first municipality in Europe to host an open-air exhibition, originally planned as an outdoor triennial of European sculpture. In 1971, at the occasion of the VIth Sonsbeek International Sculpture Exhibition, “Sonsbeek buiten de perken” (Beyond the Bounds), directed by Wim Beeren, Jef Cornelis realized a film for television that would end up with a critical word from Daniel Buren about the notion of art in public spaces: “You do not leave the cultural or artistic arena when you exhibit out on the streets or in the fields, he said. [...] Buren also pointed out that art that was presented on the street or in a field was much more ‘aggressive’, because people came into contact with it when they hadn’t asked for it.” (p.18 of the transcripton of an “Interview with Jef Cornelis on his film for television, Sonsbeek buiten de perken, 1971, and other films on major art events”).

Back on Veduta:

The collective Pied la Biche is pleased to invite you to
THE GREAT THREE SIDED FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT
Stadium Laurent Gérin, Vénissieux (France), on oct. 31, from 2pm to 8pm.

The rules were invented by Asger Jorn in the 60s. This game should upset, according to Jorn, the established rules of the football bipolar clash.
Seven football teams, from the region amateur championship of Lyon, will be opposed during games confronting three teams on a hexagonal field prepared on purpose. (from the artists’ statement)

Pied-La-Biche inscribed this kind of invitations for artistic interventions in public spaces in the core of their practice and joyfully play with notions such as ‘popular culture’ (scopitones) or their citizen activity (ecological issues). Here, they use the device of inviting an audience to come to a stadium in order to watch a show, taking the form of a sport game, the battle being allegedly turned into a collaboration by adding a team.

The first issue pointed by Buren in 1971 does not exist the same way in the nowadays large scale exhibitions and it seems that the operation “Veduta” will not bring in the city any forms of art that could be seen as ‘agressive’ (however, I once saw a passer-by strongly pushing away someone who approched her for a “free hug“). Though, Buren’s second objection on the correlation between exhibiting art in public spaces and art “leaving the cultural or artistic arena” became more and more prevalent.

Per C.G.

A la foire [FR], par Romain Gibert et Bertrand Vallet.

Romain Gibert, qui devait passer plusieurs heures près du stand de la galerie Plume à la foire d’art contemporain Slick (cf. post à ce sujet), a pris cinq photographies de ce lieu de vente et d’exposition; Bertrand Vallet les a légendées.

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On constate ici un enchevêtrement d’œuvres d’art accrochées de manière classique sur un mur blanc, d’objets de design posés sur une étagère intercalée elle-même entre deux bureaux, et de documents de la galerie. On devine les catalogues d’artiste posés sur la table au premier plan à la manière de revues dans la salle d’attente d’un professionnel de santé.
Le décor de la foire est posé.

La SLICK se distancie du lieu sacré du musée: on peut y manger une pâtisserie en buvant un coca.
Les conditions de mise en scène permettent ainsi aux acheteurs potentiels de se projeter, une fois leurs “coups de coeur” installés dans leurs intérieurs.

Il n’est pas plus question d’art ici. Le photographe nous offre une vision d’un bureau éphémère, sur lequel est à nouveau présent un ordinateur portable Macintosh, sorte de fétiche des galeristes.
On y retrouve par ailleurs son obsession du double…

Romain Gibert a décidément choisi de ne pas montrer d’art, ici réduit par le cadrage à de minuscules tranches de tableaux tronqués.
Une fois de plus, il semble insister – comme l’aurait fait un sociologue du travail missionné sur la foire – sur les socialisations professionnelles. Assiste-t-on à un de ces “brainstormings” informels dont est friande la nouvelle économie?

L’artiste ou le galeriste se remarque au second plan par sa posture et son absence de manteau et de sac, éléments de distinction.
Il n’est pas besoin d’un badge qui sur-signifie de manière superflue son appartenance au monde des professionnels.

En revenant de la foire [FR]

On Romain Gibert’s work now shown at the Slick Art fair for the Galerie Plume in Paris.

Romain Gibert, Sans titre (vendeur de tableaux), photographie, 20×30, 2009.

A l’occasion de promenades dans la cité des Doges, Romain Gibert a isolé différents lieux vénitiens et les scènes qu’ils engendraient pour leur singularité patinée et leurs colonies de visiteurs. Comme pour les travaux précédents à Paris, en Russie et en Auvergne, “Venise” consiste en une collection d’images dont rien ne semble d’abord troubler la banalité. Il pourrait s’agir de photographies de voyage, des anonymes à Venise, en été. On remarque ensuite la coïncidence plus ou mois flagrante d’éléments dédoublés sur chacune de ces images, indistinctement êtres humains ou objets architecturaux – parfois les deux à la fois, l’un saturant l’autre. La ville devenue décor est surpeuplée.

Romain Gibert, Sans titre (Palais 2), photographie, 20×30, 2009.

Deux clichés quasiment identiques sont systématiquement superposés : pris depuis deux angles différents pour les objets immobiles ou avec un court délai de prise de vue pour les éléments mouvants. Dans Palais ou Deux bateaux, Romain Gibert a opéré une manipulation topologique « cubiste » du site. Il a effacé l’élément contigu au bâtiment qu’il allait dupliquer pour y substituer la réplique. Pris sous un angle différent pour entretenir l’illusion perspective, les deux bâtiments montrent alors simultanément plusieurs faces. Lorsque ces architectures ou des structures légères contiennent des êtres animés (Vendeur cartes postales, Groupe vaporetto), la présence de clones humains donne lieu à une narration dont la lecture évoque celle des « cycles » de peinture, ici au format standard 24×36. En effet, des êtres vivants qui ne posent pas se retrouvent sur deux prises de vues successives et les deux étapes d’un même geste sont alors juxtaposées dans la même image, comme celle de choisir puis d’acheter en second plan de Vitrine Epicerie ou, de manière récurrente, celle de filmer, de prendre une photographie (Casquette vaporetto). Dans Policiers, deux carabinieri au premier plan offrent une solution trop facile, avec leurs cheveux courts et leurs uniformes. Leur interaction – ils se regardent et se parlent – prouve qu’il s’agit bien de deux individus en présence l’un de l’autre. Les deux occurrences du personnage du second plan constituent en revanche l’étrangeté de cette image et la distinguent de celle que ce même individu prend au même moment, dans la même rue de la Sérénissime.

Romain Gibert, Sans titre (Vendeur de roses), photographie, 20×30, 2009.

En produisant des séries, Romain Gibert questionne la dimension de l’album de voyage et avec elle, l’imagerie liée au tourisme de masse. L’artiste reproduit le cadrage et la facture des photographies de ses sujets, les touristes faiseurs d’images. Alors que ces derniers essaient généralement d’exclure leurs pairs de leurs cadrages (Graffiti, Pont Canal), Romain Gibert utilise leurs intrusions comme autant de paires d’yeux qui se reproduisent de manière mécanique.

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Slick
Du 23 au 26 Octobre 2009 au CENTQUATRE
104, rue Aubervilliers
Paris XIXe
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Galerie Plume
48 rue de Montmorency
Paris IIIe

hdpp://Yerevan

31/10 – 22/11/2009

During three weeks in Yerevan, Armenia, I will realize a project conceived together with Mkrtich Tonoyan and former Session 18 mates Elodie Dufour, Marianna Hovhannisyan and Diane Pigeau (shortened hdpp://).

Besides a workshop at the Armenian Open University, including a presentation with hdpp://, I will report on this blog and on rhiz.eu a series of encounters I will lead in Yerevan and Art-Commune Artists residence (Aramus) on the notion of mediation devices.

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Afterclass Meeting
together with Elodie Dufour, Marianna Hovhannisyan and Diane Pigeau.
November 2, 2009 (schedule not available yet)
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Mediated Mediation
From nov 9 to 21, 2009 in Aramus and Yerevan
At Art Commune (Aramus):
Nov. 9: presentation.
Nov. 21: round table.

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Supported by the European Cultural Foundation in collaboration with the Open Society Institute.

La Semaine Française au Stuttgarter Kunstverein

7/10/2009

What is the monkey they got off their back(s)?
Certainly not the making of ‘girly’ artworks. Sooon Lee’s pictures are made with puppet-house models. Géraldine Michel paints mainly asleep female subjects on fabrics. All this, technically very well done.

What is the monkey they got off their back(s)??
Certainly not the making of ‘Frenchy’ artworks. Sooon Lee’s pictures are depicting a dreamt inner world with surrealisticist herbal and animal presence while Géraldine Michel shows “scenes de genre”. No political issue, no sharp eye on the surrounding hardness of reality.

The monkey off their back(s) is maybe then to joyfully jump in these clichés, enjoying them a lot, questioning them through your eyes. What is the French Week celebrating? What is the true role of boules, chanson and accordions in the every-day life? What is folklore standing for, in a globalised culture? Both artists were very glad this frame offered them a possibility to show their works in the city of Stuttgart. It is even the first time in Germany for Sooon Lee and she really enjoys. Yeah, because she is not really French, you know… Among dozens of Korean students, she went to the art-school in Paris in the nineties and stayed there. She feels alone like a dog in the Paris of Amelie, in the museum-city. She has an ambivalent feeling toward this tiny sepia model watched by a big controlling eye. Géraldine Michel sometimes feels sorry to have a ‘has been’ work but most of times, she is okay with it. The young characters she paints do nothing spectacular themselves, they wear stripes. Géraldine Michel paints on colorful industrial fabrics the sweet boredom of peaceful, graceful moments. Representations of youth in pools and asleep carry themselves a sensation of déjà-vu.
The two artists met the day before yesterday on their way to Stuttgart. They took one room each, in this place which really looks like an apartment. While Géraldine was putting a failed painting in Sooon’s room, Sooon would put a picture in Géraldine’s one. There is an emergency and a need to watch them. Don’t you see?

Géraldine Michel will stay at the Stuttgarter Kunstverein until the end of the exhibition and is available sur rendez-vous in her office installed there, to answer to all your questions on the role of art, Sooon Lee actuality and the recipe of the Chartreuse brandy.

More pictures here.
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Monkey off my back
Sooon Lee & Géraldine Michel
7-22 oct 2009
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stuttgarter kunstverein e.v.
dir. hanns-michael rupprechter
filderstrasse 34 – D-70180 stuttgart
++49-711-60 68 67 – - – di – do | 14 – 18 h