Récits Contemporains Polyptyque - Marseille Photography Fair
With Récits Contemporains, Marseille Photography Fair Polyptyque explores the current trends in photography.The exhibition brought together ten international artists in collaboration with their European galleries. The fair has also been an opportunity to highlight the vibrant local arts scene by presenting the work of ten photographers from the Sud Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur region that have been shortlisted for the Polyptyque Award.
Clare Strand (Parrotta, Cologne) / Federico Clavarino (Viasaterna, Milan)/ Gloria Oyarzabal (Rocio Santa Cruz, Barcelona)/ Laurence Aëgerter (Binome, Paris)/ Max Pinckers (Sofie Van de Velde, Antwerp)/ Pinar & Viola (Flatland, Amsterdam) / Rachel de Joode (Christophe Gaillard, Paris) / Sébastien Arrighi (Myo, Mougins) Thomas Mailaender (Michael Hoppen, London) / Victoria Marques-Pinto (Black Box Projects, London)
The artists in the ‘Contemporary Stories’ exhibition survey the current state of images while highlighting their influence on both our daily lives and the power of narrative in our understanding of the world. In some works, the "surreal" takes on a cathartic dimension as a response to the brutality of environmental awareness and the grip of technology on our daily lives. In other works, humour and irony allow a more distanced approach to current issues and events. The artists also use physical reality as a tool for interpreting contemporary society, through the representation of nature and bodies but also in the materiality of the works themselves with sculptures, tapestries, collages, installations.
Gloria Oyarzabal, Woman Go No’Gree (2019). Courtesy of the artist and Galeria Rocio Santa Cruz (Barcelona).Credit Quentin Besson.
With Woman Go No'Gree, Gloria Oyarzabal (Rocio Santa Cruz, Barcelona) examines the role of colonialism in the imposition of a social order based on gender differentiation in Africa. Ghost Stories by Federico Clavarino (Viasaterna, Milan) interweaves anecdotes from the history of Marseille with portraits of today's youth in a story that emphasises the narrative power of images. In Margins of Excess, Max Pinckers (Sofie Van der Velde, Antwerp) evokes a series of deceptions as a means to scrutinise the tenuous gap between reality and fiction, and questions the social structures that organise our collective narratives. Then, with Ora, Sébastien Arrighi (Myo, Mougins) reveals a mysterious and harsh Corsica where mystical beliefs and social realism converge.
Rachel de Joode, Arrangement on Pedestal (2015). Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Christophe Gaillard (Paris). Credit Quentin Besson.
Victoria Marques-Pinto, Imminent Impressions (2020). Courtesy of the artist and Black Box Project (London). Credit Quentin Besson.
Clare Strand, Material (2015). Courtesy of the artist and Parrotta Gallery (Cologne). Credit Quentin Besson.
Imminent Impressions by Victoria Marques-Pinto (Black Box Projects, London) looks at the impact of consumerism on the environment and our representation of the world. Meanwhile, the work of Rachel de Joode (Christophe Gaillard, Paris) focuses on the tension between the screen and the body, creating a world in which the sensation of touch is experienced with the eyes. In Longo Maï by Laurence Aëgerter (Binome, Paris), swimmers woven from phosphorescent threads transport us into an alternative state of awareness of the world and nature. By inviting us to observe dust moving in a spectrum of light, Material by Clare Strand (Parrotta, Cologne) encourages us to become aware of our physical environment and to contemplate the moment that is suspended in time.
Thomas Mailaender, Internet (2019). Courtesy of the artist and Gallery Michael Hoppen (London). Credit Quentin Besson.
Pinar and Viola, Mother Hearth (2019). Courtesy of the artist and Flatland Gallery (Amsterdam).Credit Quentin Besson.
Federico Clavarino, Ghost Stories (2021). Courtesy of the artist and Viasaterna Gallery (Milan). Credit Vost Photo.
In his work, Thomas Mailaender (Michael Happen, London) subverts clichés and transposes them onto unexpected media to humorously accentuate the evolution of our visual landscape and related social behaviours.
With irony and sincerity, the video Mother Earth by Pinar& Viola (Flatland, Amsterdam) personifies nature as a sensual flower that exudes aphorisms. Through these selected works, the artists allude to the potential power of technology on the collective consciousness
27th August - 18th September 2021
-26 and 38 rue de la République - 13001 Marseille - France
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Organised by Centre Photographique Marseille
Artistic Direction by archipelago projects.