MOT Museum of Contemporary Art

Parallel Worlds

26 Jul - 28 Sep 2008

Hugues Reip Eden, 2003
PARALLEL WORLDS
an exhibition by Hugues Reip
26 July - 28 September 2008

with Hugues Reip, Michel Blazy, François Curlet, Roland Flexner, Daniel Guyinnet, Jacques Julien, Mathieu Mercier, Rei Naito, Kohei Nawa, Alain Séchas, Yutaka Sone

Do we live simply in one world—the world we see around us?
There may be other worlds, alternative realities, somewhere very close by. Now, Hugues Reip and 10 Japanese and French artists invite us to experience "parallel worlds" like that of works of fantasy and science fiction.

Born in Cannes, France in 1964, artist Hugues Reip commands an array of art media, including neon and video. Parallel Worlds gathers Reip's major works in one exhibition, such pieces as "Eden," in which viewers encounter an optical illusion of themselves, as tiny as insects, inside huge plants, and "White Spirit," in which humorous ghosts fleetingly appear and disappear. The world of Reip's imagination unfolds around us, a world uncanny, yet filled with warmth.

The ten other artists, whose work Reip considers resonant with his own, constitute a line up of some of the foremost contemporary art creators of Japan and France. While wide-ranging in character, their art can transform our everyday sensibilities, causing us to sense the presence of an alternative realities existing infinitely in parallel with our own. In addition to distinctive works previously shown by these artists, Michel Blazy—known for his installation pieces created using foodstuffs—has created a new work for this exhibition, as have Jacques Julien, Kohei Nawa, and Naito Rei. An exhibition packed with the fun of contemporary art, Parallel Worlds will give wings to the imaginations of all who visit and a taste of the thrill of discovering new worlds. A project marking the 150th anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Japan.
 

Tags: Michel Blazy, François Curlet, Roland Flexner, Mathieu Mercier, Rei Naito, Kohei Nawa, Alain Séchas, Yutaka Sone