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Pre-natal



During the phase coined as ‘Pre-natal’ and then ‘Baby’, a clear aspiration emerged: to transform artistic practices into more progressive territories, transcending traditional realms of ‘contemporaryart,’ trying to shift to the historical notion of avant-garde and trying to understand what avant-garde could mean in the 20th century.

A foundational element of this artistic endeavour was not merely craftsmanship but an emphasis on reflexive practices. Both digital media and traditional exhibition spaces, like the ‘white cube’, emerged as critical platforms. Such considerations can be traced back to the ideas espoused in ‘The Medium is the Massage’ by Marshall McLuhan and ‘White Cube’ by Brian O’ Doherty, underscoring the significance of the context where art is showcased.

Artistically, the focus leaned towards installations. In isolation, individual artworks might be perceived as singular ‘words’, but they form compelling ‘sentences’ or narratives when grouped or curated together. There was a profound inclination to challenge the boundaries of inertness or activated objects, which could become riddles when juxtaposed with diverse elements. The arrangement of art pieces could be envisioned akin to film editing, fostering interactions sequentially, editing the onlooker’s ‘dérive’ (drift) in a space.

Artistic display apparatuses, such as explanatory panels and labels, became integral to this research. While it was acknowledged that textual and intellectual accompaniments are essential, they should not overshadow nor dictate one’s interpretation of an art piece. Each viewer should engage with art in a way that resonates with their personal history or emotional state, undistracted by supplementary texts or labels within the exhibition milieu. 

The focus shifted towards viewing art as an immersive experience only designed for the viewer. This delicate interplay between curation and art practice crystallised, drawing from a vast palette of mediums like text, installation, paint, video, music, and performance. Rather than thinking of exhibitions as static platforms of representation, the aim was to use as well as physical spaces and digital spaces to pulsate with life but also map all the different spaces involved in art making, such as the artist’s studio, the printed formats, or the curatorial formats.


Studio > < Exhibition
variable objects, variable dimensions
2013







Accident Painting
resin, phosphorescent spray, cotton canvas, spruce
121 × 31 × 4 cm
2012

C. R. O. M.
Group show with Paul Limoujoux and Nicolas Degrange
Tour St. Jacques
St. Emilion, France
2012


Une Histoire de Plage
chair, latex, tarp, latex, tarp
130 × 80 × 35 cm
2012


L’une
resin, oil bottle
20 x 20 x 60 cm
2012


Levier
resin, bottle rack
60 x 40 x40 cm
2012





Mic/Not Working
écal
Renens, Switzerland
2011


1/2 Agnès Martin
acrylic on canvas
76.4 x 76.4 x 2.5 cm
2012


Notes:
The best conditions for this canvas to be fully appreciated are met when it is hung at eye level, and is more than one size away from the other pieces.




CHROME
Canvas on frame, spray-painted
2012


Notes:
This canvas can be displayed vertically, or diagonally, depending on use. The white wall is a quality choice.



Ok?
Galerie Toroni
écal
Renens, Switzerland
2012



Dal(le) Erranc(e)
2 resin bricks
25.5 × 12.5 × 6 cm
2012


Notes:
These two bricks must be presented side by side on the floor. The arrangement is left to the curator's discretion.

PEPITO
Resin and foam on sagex
25 x 25 x3 cm
2012


Notes:
This sculpture must be presented on a wall, 175 cm from the floor.

P.A.S.
acrylic, cotton canvas,
P.A.V. (book on printed canvas), MDF
54 × 29 × 3.5 cm
2012


Notes:
This testimonial-sculpture is to be placed on the floor. Connection with the video "P.A.V." is not necessary.



FAUX PLAFOND
Rosette (white) on painted wall (blue)
125 × variable height x 2 cm
2012


Notes
The rosette should appear on an azure/sea-blue background. The wall must be painted with scotch tape on the left and right, starting at the floor. The wall painting stops at the highest point the painter can reach. Paint is applied with a roller.


FROMAGE
Four layers of resin, yellow, orange, then 2x yellow, on object
25 × 70 × 15 cm
2012


Notes:
This panoptical object should be placed intelligently on the floor. It can also play with "FROMAGE (BIS)".





Systems



PPP+
rt4a
Screen
Exhibition Making
Arthur Fouray
a plus o minus
mmm

PRE–Natal
before Arts



A utopia researching
times as clouds of 
rumors, for works
are complex words, 
and arts shifting 
languages.


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Many thanks for reading.

Special thanks to Béatrice & Alain Fouray.

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