— Les filles du calvaire
After Asphyxie (Asphyxia), four years ago, I am presenting my second solo exhibition at Les filles du calvaire gallery in their new space: L'impuissance (Powerlessness), in search of an aesthetic suited to the era of climate drift, decentered from anthropocentrism, and sensitive to the tragic loss of what still remains.
Within the scope of the demise of the commonplace1, this exhibition will delve into diverse and fragmented themes, bearing a title akin to a fragrance. While the title continues to evoke a symptomatic connection to a sexual issue, the focus here will be on political and existential impotence, intertwined with the realm of painting through constrained experiences.
Moreover, it encompasses a deliberate powerlessness: a reduction of dominance in devastation, possession, and control, and an elevation of care, gentleness, humble attention, and dignity towards the everyday treasure that constitutes the world of appearances.
This will feature German policemen mired in the mud, exuding a macho demeanor, a sunset over the sea observed by a plastic trash bin, the highly urbanized beach of Ostend rendered obsolete by rising waters, and a front wall of bricks adorned with graffiti bearing witness to love, serving as public imprints of a confined existence.
Dans la serre (In the Greenhouse), a painting that took me two years to develop, depicts a crowd standing in line within an artificial garden. Amidst human counter-productivity and disharmony of the biotope, the pictorial treatment captures the bustling life of the plants with the same precision as that of the humans².
The multitude of subjects and the variety of execution speeds also allow for a deployment of texture: skin, fur, slimy, viscous, sticky; it's not about giving up the joy of painting. This is evidenced by a bestiary including a cow's rear end, a ladybug, a rooster, a butterfly.
The exhibition will also be punctuated by small formats scaled to the level of saxicolous plants, those nameless greens, a treasure of vitality that resiliently grows in the mineral crevices of our cities, refreshing them.
Furthermore, the exhibition will include my series of "Distanciels": charcoal portraits created via Zoom during the pandemic, capturing faces illuminated by their computer screens within the ambiance and connection quality of their confinement.
An admission of fragility, a demonstration of the work behind the effectiveness of the result; some paintings are not finished. They will evolve throughout the exhibition like children, plants, or cancers.
In the basement, an anxiety-inducing conceptual video titled "You Are Here" will permeate the entire exhibition. It serves as a direct contemplation on our current way of life, exploring the inherent violence and toxicity it demands.
Finally, in line with my approach over the past three years, every Saturday during the exhibition at 5 p.m., I will publicly host an episode of "Apparences," a YouTube and Twitch channel focused on the vitality of contemporary painting in the French scene³. — Thomas Lévy-Lasne
