This exhibition intends to investigate the artist's practice and singularity, while exploring what is at stake in one’s desire to see and represent. When one moves beyond the limits of reality, one moves into the realms of fantasy. Artists allow us to catch a glimpse of such a fantasy, by writing, tracing, catching a fragment of reality from which our “visual lust” arises and takes place.
The exhibition scenography compellingly blends writing, drawing and photography, while offering a symphony of black and white visions of carnal desire and eroticism. In order to enhance the dialogue amongst the mediums, the curator Ludovic de Vita asked the artists to select poems or verses, which to them echo with the overall theme of the exhibition. A special mention goes to Camille Brantes' translation of Ren Hang’s last poems, which resonate strongly with his own poetic fragments. Brantes will publish in 2018 a French translation of the entire corpus of Ren Hang’s poetry.
An abstract of Ren Hang’s last poems translated by Brantes (in French):
《爱情》
我看着你
还是会怕你会消失
我抱着你
月亮不会消失太阳不会消失
即使阴天
即使你抬头看不到它们
你也知道它们没有消失
(我只有这样安慰自己)
Amour
Je te regarde
J’ai encore peur que tu disparaisses
Je t’enlace
La Lune ne peut pas disparaître
Le Soleil ne peut pas disparaître
Même si le ciel est couvert
Même si en levant la tête tu ne les vois pas
Tu sais qu’ils n’ont pas disparu
(C’est seulement comme cela que je me console)
04/01/2017
我回头
你还站在那里
我又回头
我再回头
门关上了
我看不到你
但是我知道
Je me retourne
Tu te tiens encore là
Je me retourne encore Tu te tiens encore là
Je me retourne de nouveau
La porte est fermée
Je ne te vois pas
Mais je sais
Que tu te tiens encore là
我买一把刀
我们可以共用
如果你不爱我了
我就杀掉你
如果我不爱你了
你就杀掉我
J’achète un couteau
Nous pouvons le partager
Si tu ne m’aimes plus
Alors je te tue
Si je ne t’aimes plus
Alors tu me tues
Participating Artists: Ren Hang 任航 - Camille Brantes - Diane & Théodore - He Ling 何玲 - Frédéric Fontenoy - Damien MacDonald - Liu Tao 刘涛 - Joël Person - Davor Vrankić
More information:Beyond Real / L’envers du RéelFrom August 26 to September 23, 2017Displayed at Galerie 24b.24 bis, rue St Roch, 75001 Paris (France)
