The artist may be established in Nice, but it is on the right bank of the Var that his work flourishes this autumn, with two complementary exhibitions presented simultaneously in Vence and Carros. In his artistic practice contrary to the trends of our time and in his way of asserting an ecology of thought against a certain conception of modernity, André Marzuk cannot leave anyone indifferent. The two brilliant openings recently held in the region testify to this refreshing uniqueness in the contemporary art scene.
Firstly, at the Chapelle des Pénitents Blancs in Vence, “Concerto for Two Hearts” presents the most recent work of André Marzuk, a homogeneous pictorial series mixing techniques—writing, painting, ceramics, etc.—to create a new setting for fragments of love letters, thus perpetuating intimate exchange in the public sphere through artistic transfiguration. Arranged under the aegis of “Art, Culture and Heritage”, this meticulous display is accompanied by the artist’s publication of a beautiful catalog, a precious art book that carries an ode to tenderness.
A few kilometers away, at the André-Verdet Media Library in Carros, a retrospective sheds light on 25 years of work focused on Marzuk’s cooperation with poets, philosophers, and writers who have influenced his work. This exhibition is presented by the “International Contemporary Art Center,” which operates outside the walls during the restoration works of the château.
Polylobes, Eulogies to the Gaze, Memories of Leaves, Pictorial Offering, Traces of Light, Collection of Silences… So many titles offer the opportunity to discover very diverse series, from the virtuosity of drawing to the opulence of painting, in the nudity of a line or the richness of ceramics, with a constant dialogue between unity and multiplicity. For deconstruction, recomposition, and the use of fragments are employed here as concepts speaking of both the contemporaneity of art and the timelessness of its message. And since the authors—Yvon Le Men, Olympia Alberti, Aimé Césaire, Christian Bobin, and many others—are honored, one cannot help but be captivated by the unusual presentation of the works. In symbiosis with the library’s environment, the scenography offers the exhibition walls as so many pages of a large open book on which texts, ornamentation, paintings, and groups of paintings are composed to provide a new reading of these works.
Be it a simple meeting with a highly classical beauty tinged with contemporary artistic questioning or a desire to immerse oneself in an artistic voluntarism aimed at re-enchanting the world, the visit to these two exhibitions stands out as one of the highlights of the cultural autumn on the outskirts of the Côte d’Azur.
(1) Concerto for Two Hearts (recent works 2007-2009) – Chapelle des Pénitents Blancs, Vence – until October 31, 2009 (free entry)
(2) All I Know of the Sky, Poets, Philosophers, and Writers in the Work of André Marzuk (Retrospective 1984-2009) – André-Verdet Media Library, Carros – until December 12 (free entry). Meet with the artist, screenings, and debate: Saturday, November 7th at 2:30 pm in the Izzo Room (reservations at 04 93 29 37 97)
