“It’s ugly and it’s expensive. This is, in essence, what an overwhelming majority (in every sense of the word) of Internet users 20 minutes think of contemporary art. At least those who responded to our call for contributions on the occasion of the White Night,
whose 19th edition is being held this Saturday evening in Paris .
While the Arc de Triomphe is currently packaged according to the posthumous vision of artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude, manifestations of contemporary art in public space have become almost commonplace. Several cities thus have their dedicated meeting, whether it is Lille 3000, Liberté! in Bordeaux, Concrete rose in Toulouse, The trip to Nantes, A Summer in Le Havre… We forget some.
Bernard and the Arc de Triomphe
We therefore asked our readers if some of these works, crossed at random during their wanderings, had left them with a precise memory, a particular emotion. And if we exclude those who see in contemporary art only a cynical and useless mismanagement, there are still some great encounters with art.
The most recent is undoubtedly that of Bernard, with the Arc de triomphe packed. “I was annoyed to see it on TV, I found it ugly and useless, even sacrilegious for the French soldiers. So I decided to go and find out for myself during a professional trip to Paris. And finally, I understood that this work paradoxically highlighted the building by making people want, even haste, to rediscover it. I also realized that I, the son of a soldier, had never been to the tomb of the unknown soldier before that… And in addition, the fabric used is very beautiful, very noble. “
Mathilde and Vasarely
But this voluntary step is quite rare among the testimonies. Many Internet users tell of a chance encounter with contemporary art, often in transport. Mathilde fell in love with Vasarely’s immense frescoes in the Montparnasse station. “Apart from the stores, which are always the same, the renovation of the station is nothing revolutionary. But at least I was able to discover these works, very beautiful, very inspiring. “Vincent, also a Parisian, fell in love with” the bird in structure, like a watch mechanism, exhibited at the Auber RER correspondence … It is truly fantastic. What a pity it is not in a museum, the details are breathtaking! “
Several testimonies praise unusual and unexpected works. Olivier loved it, in Nantes, the work of Céleste Boursier-Mougenot : “In a huge aviary installed on a square, birds land on electric guitars and compose, on the fly, improvised music. Well done the artist! »Still in Nantes, but also in Paris, memories flow of encounters with astonishing works during the Nuit blanche or Voyage à Nantes.
And sometimes, these works also make you think. Arnaud has a lot to say about the blockhouse-mirror on the beach at Leffrinckoucke, near Dunkirk: remember. The broken reflections of the waves of the North Sea or the sunsets are like the lights of a lighthouse which reminds us of a duty to remember. “