}

Profiles

15 Years of Artistic Creation in France

May 10 - June 25, 2006

Where does the French artistic scene stand as regards to the last fifteen years? What are its eminent character traits? What are its dominant trends? Were there notable changes that had transformed its features? These are some of the questions brought into play by this idea of sketching a “profile” and not a “panorama” of its present status. The semantic differentiation between these two words is quite imposing here. If the notion of panorama supposes a scope and an extent which imply a broadened vision of the situation, that of profile does not make out the same meaning and sooner accentuates the idea of an overview, a digest, following the example of an artist who endeavors to give a thumbnail sketch of his model in an attempt to express its essential traits.

The first chapter of Fernand Braudel’s remarkable work “The Identity of France – History and Environment” published in 1986 bears the title “That France names herself diversity”. As a reply to this precious turn of phrase, the exposition “Profiles”, albeit far from being exhaustive, gather some 60 works by about 40 artists, nationals and foreigners, living and working in France, presenting a sample group of contemporary creation merging all trends and styles.

As its organizer, the famous art critic Philippe Piguet put it, this exposition “which intended to highlight a present state of art production as it developed in France more or less in the last fifteen years and what is more insomuch as it is sifted through sieves of public collections” blew like a spring breeze wafting a gentle air from France into the halls of Pera Museum, and gave the contemporary artistic panorama of a country that has always been amongst the vanguards of European Art.

Curator: Philippe Piguet

Artists: Adel Abdessemed, Adam Adach, Jean-Michel Alberola, Stephan Balkenhol, Claude Closky, Philippe Cognee, Stephen Dean, Richard Fauguet, Gregory Forstner, Bernard Frize, Jakob Gautel, Philippe Gronon, Marie-Ange Guilleminot, Pierre Joseph, Jason Karaindros , Regine Kolle, Christian Lapie, Natacha Lesueur, Isabelle Levenez, Olivier Masmonteil, Didier Mencoboni, Yan-Pei Ming, Jean-Luc Moulene, Bruno Perramant, Bernard Piffaretti, Pascal Pinaud, Eric Poitevin, Philippe Ramette, Sophie Ristelhueber, Georges Rousse, Samuel Rousseau, Yvan Salomone, Sarkis, Anne-Marie Schneider, Kristina Solomoukha, Barthelemy Toguo, Patrick Tosani, Xavier Zimmermann

Exhibition Catalogue

Profiles

Profiles

Where does the French artistic scene stand in regard to the last fifteen years? What are its eminent character traits? What are its dominant trends? Did nay notable change come about to transform...

The Chronicle of Sarajevo

The Chronicle of Sarajevo

Inspired by the great European masters, from Renaissance to Art Nouveau, Berber’s works exemplify the deep, opaque whites of his journeys through the fairy tale landscapes of Bosnia to the dark, macabre burrows of Srebrenica.

Marcel Duchamp’s Bicycle Wheel

Marcel Duchamp’s Bicycle Wheel

In 1998 Ben Jakober and Yannick Vu collaborated on an obvious remake of Marcel Duchamp’s Roue de Bicyclette, his first “readymade” object. Duchamp combined a bicycle wheel, a fork and a stool to create a machine which served no purpose, subverting accepted norms of art. 

SAMİH RİFAT : BEFORE THE DEATH OF THE AUTHOR

SAMİH RİFAT : BEFORE THE DEATH OF THE AUTHOR

Esra Özdoğan

To Elif

Old Loyalties
The short list of words that one feels one must resort to, but I will nevertheless try to refrain from using: Multifaceted, of a