LIZA FETISSOVA gallery presents “VIVE LA FRANCE! ", The warned, radiant and resistant eclecticism of 9 French photographers in an exhibition on the before and after!
In partnership with Galerie DUREV Events, 56 bd de la Tour Maubourg, Paris 7ème
" I have been Parisian for 20 years ... the French, I got to know them in this city. I master the French language thanks to this city. This is where I fell in love with photography, which has taken up so much space in my life. This is where my son was born.
For me, Paris is France, in a way (don't get me wrong!).
In this city full of noise, passers-by, the hubbub of crowds or demonstrations, restaurants, life ... where most neighborhoods do not know silence ... this is where we saw the most radical change , the most blatant, the most obvious: 'before' and 'after' the pandemic. From full to empty, or half full. A real pause time, pending… An exam!
Each one lived this confinement as he could. And now that we relearn, that I relearn to breathe, to go out, to make plans (holidays, again - we are in France) I would like to manage to capture this unique moment of rediscovery and intense observation. With the help of photography, of course.
Vive la France! exhibition tries to capture, tenderly, with a touch of irony, the empty and not empty city of Paris. Paris, which is only apparently empty, and these photographic metaphors are like the keys to an enigma, possible leads: what is going on behind the curtains and the drawn blinds? What gives us strength and hope? In fact, how to approach the vacuum? Don't be afraid of it?
Do you hear your footsteps ringing in the deserted rooms of the Palace of Versailles (by Patrick Tourneboeuf)? The vertiginous red walls with beautiful patinas absorb us and transport us to another dimension… their abstract work force is in counterpoint with the monumental painting of Horace Vernet in the background "The taking of the smalah of Abd el-Kader by the Duke of Aumale in Taguin, May 16, 1843" produced on the spot in 1843, which brings us back to our human realities. Unless you prefer to remain in the unknown in the abstract?
You can't think of Paris without the Eiffel Tower… under a bell (by Philippe Tarabella) or under pretty legs (by Pierre Boulat). It always stands proudly, against all odds.
Is Paris empty? Never ! Its tenacious inhabitants are its omnipresent sculptures. Some symbolize the firm hand of power and its past victories - like that of Napoleon, a symbol that is always unshakable, constant, of the Republic and its values.
Rodin's figures of the Porte de l'Enfer, sublimated by Bruno Aveillan appear to us in the halo of their aura, that of a work of art, but also of humans, in its expressions of power as much as resistance or forfeiture. There are also anonymous statues, like the one in the photo of Philippe Tarabella - without arms. She is all in tenderness, in femininity, as an abridged desire. It reminds us of ourselves, unable to realize our aspirations, forced to nullify physical contact with others.
Alain Cornu's windows perfectly recreate the ambience of the city in suspense as a parenthesis. And we can only love its reflections, its curves, their unique plasticity. This city tells us that it is free, independent, beautiful and that it can even do without us! Otherwise, it could also revolt - and the fire of Notre-Dame in the photographs of Cyrus Cornut will put us back in our place, that of little beings, helpless before the anger of the Gods of Paris.
Fortunately Madame la Flore, beautiful nature, gives us color, resistance. How to find inspiration in a bunch of fruits and vegetables. The latter and the photographer, Régis Figarol, are locked up without permission to leave? Crowded, cramped, each shows so little, but our eye extends well the contours, the smooth, velvety or rough, faceted skin, which lends itself to caresses. You can even smell them. Decidedly, our senses were sharpened during this confinement! Finally the flowers of Angel de Munter are a sip of colors in a hollow period, plants that the artist passes in black and white to then re-colorize as he pleases: the form remains intact, but not the content… Still a life lesson ?
Are we still going to authorize the presence of a few humans in this gathering? Three icons of style in the photos of the legendary Roger Schall - Coco Chanel, Marlène Dietrich and a young Demoiselle - make us to put our backs straight, look up and love the timeless - Parisian chic. Chic that cannot be learned and without which Paris is no longer Paris.
And without Paris lovers - what would we do? Here they are ! And even the grids are no longer an obstacle!
Vive la France ! Vive Paris ! Vive la vie !
