I am by birth a Genevese

About

Vegas Gallery is pleased to present ‘I am by birth a Genevese' , an installation project imagined by Swiss artist Alexandre Bianchini and French/Swiss artist Pascal Rousson to re-enact the strange atmosphere of Doctor Frankenstein's laboratory and generate a new art work, a new creature. Made of several and diverse works, purposely clashing with each other, their creation will only been revealed on the evening of the preview. More than 160 artists have accepted their invitation, and if the majority of the works are not particularly shocking, most of them thrive on the idea of weirdness, or possess an inner weirdness (either by the medium, process, or subject used within the work), and their relation to the theme will make sense when displayed altogether. Following Frankenstein's experience, each work being a metaphor of the scavenged body parts used to conceive the Creature, they were interested to produce an installation, a creature, made out of very eclectic works, in order to create a visual surprise, looking to see if coherence will appear within the accident and the apparent disaster. It also allows them to play with the popular conception of the artist who depicts him as possessed, literally occupied by an inspired spirit that creates and self-destructs. Both Alexandre Bianchini and Pascal Rousson practices thrive already on the understanding of the nature of art and artist: sourcing and then manipulating their material surroundings, they play with the idea of facades, stage or theatre, and present artists as self-mythologizing thieves of ideas and images. Their practices highlight the social framework conditions within which the artists' personal relationships are developed, and the inevitability of citations in a post-modernist world who questions the model of artistic imagination and the loss of meaning of images. In this instance, the parallel with the theme of Frankenstein came to them naturally, through the notions of creation, invention and imagination, present within any artistic practice. This project questions also the different way of exhibiting artworks, through the tradition of Salons and Cabinets of Curiosities, who used to be the only places where art works where exhibited and without curatorial approach. In this instance, the installation can be seen as a critic and metaphor for the role of museum curator, seen as a fake god who tries, through new arrangement and themes, to create a new meaning for works which are fading away trapped in those graves for contemporary art. By opposition, Alexandre Bianchini and Pascal Rousson wish to conduct experimentation, stressing on the visual result rather than a theme: the theme is merely a pretext for the visual clash and experience. By the juxtaposition of various works within the installation, and their status as parts of a larger whole rather than as self-contained pictorial objects, the installation challenges the concept of art and artists as singular entities, as well as the art's dissident vision of itself. Melanie MOREAU The exhibition will also be shown at Forde-Usine (Geneva), from 8 September to 4 October 2009. ‘I am by birth a Genevese' is sponsored by Pro Helvetia/Swiss Embassy/Migros pour-cent culturel/Ville de Geneve/Fond d'art contemporain de la ville de Geneve (fmac) Artists: John M Armleder Dragan Aleksic Emil Anderfuhren Solvej Dufour Anderson Omar Ba Alex Baladi Francis Baudevin Pierre Belouin Ben Jacob Benjama Sophie Caroline Bernhard Donatella Bernardi Alexandre Bianchini Vanessa Bianchini Pierre Bismuth Christian Bili Vanessa Billy Jean-Luc Blanc Michel Blazy Amie Bolissian Kim Seob Boninsegni Jacques Bonnard Thomas Bonny Laurence Bonvin Olaf Breuning Tarramo Broennimann Marc Calame Frank Capra Bettina Carl Adrien Chevalley Fabien Clerc Genevieve Closuit Claudia Comte Jean Crotti Charles Cuccu Richard Decaillet Pascal Decaillet Simon Deppierraz Fouad Dumontier Hadrien Dussoix Saskia Edens Phillippe d Eliopoulos Anne-Sophie Estoppey Chris Faria Joseph Farine Fred Favre Estelle Ferreira Joelle Flumet Toby Frankenstein David Fryer Christopher Fullemann Francesca Gabbiani Thomas Galler Aurelien Gamboni Anne Gast Gerber&Gerber Olivier Genoud Stephen Gill Geraldine Gliubislavich Clare Goodwin Christian Gonzenbach Alois Godinat Christian Graser Wade Guyton Fabrice Gygi Herve Graumann Alex Hanimann Alain Huck Richard Hoeck David Hominal Robert Irelande Francois Jeannin Alexandre Joly Raphael Julliard Carl June Nicole Hassler Heringa/Van Kalsbeek Gauthier Huber Alex Hudson Greg Hug Francois Jeannin Fabio Jaramillo Julien Kaeser San Keller Thomas Koenig Andreas Kressig Isamu Krieger Elke Krystufek Sarah Lis Balthazar Lovay Brighid Lowe Urs Luthi Christian Marclay Angela Marzullo Stephen McDonald Jeff McMillan Merlu John Miller Valentina Mirkovic dos Santos Christian Moeller David Monnet Elena Montesinos Lucia More Claudio Moser Olivier Mosset Gianni Motti Melodie Mousset Paul Noble Karim Noureldin Amy o'Neill Tim Phillips Matthieu Pilloud Beatriz Pedrera Mai-Thu Perret Gianmose Petazzi Marie-France Perret-Gentil MR Magic Charlemagne Palestine Steven Parrino Valentina Pini Walter Pfeiffer Yann Leopold Popper Laure Prouvost Theodora Quiriconi Richard Le Quellec Adam Rabinowitz Gerald Rast Helge Reumann Christophe Rey Nicolas Rieben Riond Xavier Robel Anne Rochat Pascal Robert Jeanne-Salomée Rochat Sylvie Rodriguez Sandra Roth Pascal Rousson Daniel Ruggiero Eddie Ruscha Christophe Rutimann Aline Saigne Djonam Saltani Rebecca Sauvin Pierre Schwerzmann Francesca Serra Peter Stoffel Marion Tampon-Lajarriette John Tremblay Gabriel Truan James Unsworth Nicolas Vagnieres Benjamin Valenza Ilan Vanbros Marie Velardi Jean-Luc Verna Sandrine Viscomi Morten Viskum Jean-Philippe Volonter Nicolas Wagnieres Patrick Weidmann Simon Willems Barbara Yvelin Olivier Zimermann Zorro & Bernardo