An artistic gesture on the presence of the exiles
The growing presence of the exiles and the question of their reception represent a challenge for our European societies. Women and men are leaving their country in the attempt to save their lives and those of their children. They are fleeing hell, death, and the absence of hope and are heading toward Europe in quest of a possible future. Europe is undergoing a great test regarding its values, tempted to shut down, to withdraw, risking to lose itself.
The plastic artist Catherine Van den Steen whose work has intersected several times with the themes linked to exile and exodus, as well as those linked to the diversity of human beings in the city, is proposing a monumental installation of 10 meters high by 7,85 meters wide and 4 meters deep of which the intention is to make the European audience experience the resilience journey of the exiles, inspired from the double movement that inhabits The Fall of the Damned, the canvass painted by Rubens in 1620.
By depicting in
a very realistic fashion the naked bodies fall of the damned -, Rubens is
painting, through the play of light and colour, simultaneously a fall and a
rise. It is this double movement that Catherine Van den Steen wants to offer to
the public, with a confrontation to the fall (who are the damned?) and the
experience of a rise “inside” the canvass.
The device will be made of two series of paintings displayed on scaffolding, which one can climb inside, to descend again behind the installation.
On the façade will be the reproduction in value (shadow and light) of the drawing of Rubens’ work on a translucent canvass.
Inside, four levels that visitors will pass through to make the exiles’ journey present to them from their point of departure up to their dream of a European integration, with backgrounds of colour and light inspired by Rubens’ painting.
The translucent feature of the façade canvass and a play of light will enable to experience the “rise of the living” behind “the fall of the damned”. The public will rise with the exiles… a sound environment will accompany the movement.
The making of
the four interior levels will be preceded by the organization of art workshops
in which Catherine Van den Steen will work with the exiles in relation to their
journey.
A filmmaker will
follow the project during all its phases in view of making a documentary on the
work. A book-catalogue with different voices will be another manner to render
all the making of this creation.
A European ambition
Since the language of plastic art is universal, the intention is to
present this installation in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Lille, Munich, Berlin,
Brussels, Antwerp, Rome, London… if possible in the context of an event mobilizing
the public. It can be presented on the occasion of contemporary art events
(fair, biennale, Nuit Blanche, etc) and enlist different public partners
(local, regional, national and European) as well as private ones.
A team in the making
Artistic
conception Catherine Van den Steen and Jean-François Bouthors
Project
management consultants: Hocine Tandjaoui and Céline Oriol
Curator/producer:
- Financial manager: ongoing research
Project management:
Anne-Laure Gimenez
Project artistic
execution/paintings: Catherine Van den Steen
Workshops: Association
La Source Grand Paris (Children, isolated teen-agers and
families)
Sound design: Roland
Cahen
Film/documentary
maker: Caroline Emmet
Publishing: Jean-François
Bouthors
A budget estimate
The first estimate of the global budget on the basis of cost estimates, is
in the 280 000 euros bracket
