The opening of the “Yours Truly” exhibition took place on the evening of Thursday, September 25, at the Villa Arson. In front of a large audience, 55 graduate-artists from the classes of 2024 and 2025 presented their work. The evening was marked by the awarding of the Méthode and Marguerite Keskar Prize 2025, valued at 4,000 euros, to the young artist Nanka Gogitidze.
At the opening of the event around 6 p.m., the public was able to join the students already on site and discover the exhibition. About a hundred people, including students, visitors, and teachers, enjoyed a moment of exchange and discovery.
Soon after 7 p.m., attention turned to the announcement of the Méthode and Marguerite Keskar Prize 2025. The jury, represented by Sylvain Azam, director of Villa Thiole, unanimously decided to reward the young artist Nanka Gogitidze. Her work, modest and effective, was convincing due to “the economy of means used and the power of the effects displayed,” according to the jury. For Sylvain Azam, this piece perfectly aligns with the spirit of Yours Truly, addressing both the spectators and the live performers. The prize, endowed with 4,000 euros by the Fondation de France, aims to support the practice of painting and sculpture in young creation.
An ambitious collective exhibition
Yours Truly brings together 55 graduates from the 2024 and 2025 classes of Villa Arson, each presenting a work developed during their final years of study. The project is conceived as a correspondence between very different practices: paintings, sculpture, videos, live performances, installations, or photographs. The idea is not to impose a single narrative, but to orchestrate a symphony where each voice retains its identity.
For Magda Galus, a final-year student responsible for public relations, the English title came naturally: “Yours Truly goes beyond just ‘sincerely yours,’ it adds a bit more depth.” She notes that only willing graduates participated in the project, which started in March 2025 and was developed with the permanent curatorial team of the Villa.
Archives on the floor, the spectator engaged
One of the most striking choices is the use of the school’s archives. Small markers scattered throughout each room of the exhibition on the floor reveal images of Villa Arson from the 1980s to 2000s. “When the spectator leans over to observe them, they symbolically enter the photo, alongside the students,” notes Magda Galus. This setup transforms the visitor into an actor. They no longer just view the works; they participate in a collective history.
This approach aligns with the curators’ intent to limit explanatory labels: only essential information appears, encouraging a freer interpretation and prompting inquiry, providing the desired “living” aspect as envisioned by the curators. The students actively participated in this process, from selecting the works to their placement.
The Villa Arson, a unique ecosystem
Beyond the exhibition, Yours Truly illustrates the uniqueness of Villa Arson. For its director Marie-Ann Yemsi, who arrived in 2024, this event “is part of the students’ professionalization.” She emphasizes a rare ecosystem in France. Indeed, only Villa Arson brings together an art school, an art center, and residences on a single site. This allows young graduates to gain professional experience comparable to that of established artists.
The exhibition, occupying several spaces of the Villa, will be open until January 11, 2026. In February, a new project will take over, extending the ambition to make Villa Arson an essential place for contemporary creation.
A large-scale exhibition that divides visitors
While the exhibition impresses with its scope, it can also unsettle. François, 51, a real estate agent and a regular visitor, regrets “a very vast exhibition, perhaps too vast, where you only see a little bit of each work.”
Ultimately, Yours Truly is a grand letter addressed to the audience, an invitation to enter the world of emerging young artists. More than just a final-year exhibition, it is a true laboratory where the future is constructed among singularities, testimonies of the past, and collective experiences.
