Must See Exhibitions At Fondation Louis Vuitton

The Fondation Louis Vuitton is exhibiting the work of a new selection of artists from around the world.

The Louis Vuitton Fondation was constructed by Frank Gehry as a canvas to present art and culture in an iconic location in Paris.

Each year the foundation presents the works of a different selection of carefully chosen artists following the Collections four distinct categories: Contemplative, Expressionist, Pop, Music & Sound (2014/2016), or groups of works from specific events dedicated to China (2016) and Africa (2017).

This year’s exhibition In Tune with the World is currently on offer throughout the galleries of the Frank Gehry building. A selection of new artists from the collection present works on many different mediums, bringing together modern and contemporary works, most of which have never been exhibited before in the space.

Alberto Giacometti Homme qui chavire 1950 Bronze

In Tune with the World is intended to reflect today’s questions about a man’s place in the universe and the bonds that tie him to his surrounding environment and the living world. Highlighting interconnections between humans, animals, plants and inanimate objects.

Sigmar Polke Nachtkappe I 1986

Throughout the building, the works of art take on two sequences. The first offers and insight into the world of Japanese artist Takashi Murakami and the second is named Man in the Living Universe. Bringing together 28 French and international artists from different generations and techniques.

Sequence 1: Takashi Murakami

Born in 1962, Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. A fine art creator Takashi is known for his unique approach to Japanese art. His partnership with fashion brands have put him on the global map, most recently his partnership with Virgil Abloh for his SS19 collection for Louis Vuitton.

Takashi Murakami, The Octopus Eats Its Own leg, 2017

Drawing on Japan’s political, cultural and social history, Takashi Murakami cultivates a world apart, both dark and fabulous, which combines Kawaii aesthetics with references to his country’s traumas, such as the atomic bomb or, more recently, the tsunami.

Through the multiplicity of forms and materials represented in this exhibition (such as paintings, sculpture and videos), the prolific work of Takashi Murakami gives free rein to an unbridled imagination, saturated with colours and populated by fantastic creatures, half-human- half-animal, mixing popular and scholarly cultures, Buddhist iconography and manga, tradition and modernity, West and East, ancestral techniques and advanced technology.

This display, conceived in strict collaboration with the artist, is organised around three motifs: The first; DOB, the first character invented by the artist in 1993 and considered to be his alter ego. He appears both in the guise of a cute rodent in the style of Mickey Mouse and as a malicious, fierce monster, covered in eyes and sharp teeth.

Secondly comes a monumental fresco exhibited in Paris for the first time. Entitled The Octopus Eats its Own Leg (2017); it depicts characters from Chinese mythology surrounded by lavish, marvellous fauna and flora. By borrowing from the traditional iconography of 18th century Japanese painting and combining it with the style of the great historical frescoes, the artist delivers a contemporary version of the Eight Immortals of the Taoist religion. And thirdly; Kawaii (meaning ”cute” in Japanese).

The artist reinterprets this Japanese aesthetic through a variety of forms and media: sculpture, wallpapers, flower paintings and animated films inspired by manga.

Sequence 2: Man in the Living Universe

The second part of the exhibition is inspired by the assertion of Roland Barthes in La Chambre claire (Camera Lucida) (1980) “I have determined to be guided by the consciousness of my feelings”, the works are themed around the idea of emotional affinity. The itinerary is structured around three complementary themes; Irradiances; Là, infiniment… [Here, infinitely…]; and L’Homme qui chavire [The man who capsizes].

Christian Boltanski Animitas 2014

Irradiances, which is housed on the first floor of the building, presents works by Matthew Barney, Mark Bradford, Christian Boltanski, Trisha Donnelly, Dan Flavin, Jacqueline Humphries, Pierre Huyghe, Yves Klein, James Lee Byars, François Morellet, Sigmar Polke, Gerhard Richter, Shimabuku and Anicka Yi.

The title “Irradiances” refers to the light beam of Dan Flavin and brings together works in a variety of media: paintings, sculptures, videos, installations. Each work is about man’s continuous dialogue with nature, exploring how different materials and their metamorphoses can create a cosmic landscape. Dan Flavin’s Untitled, one of his first fluorescent tube creations, exudes a force from within that gives the sculpture a unique quality.

François Morellet, L’Avalanche, 2006

Here, infinitely on the ground floor, presents works by Cyprien Gaillard, Wilhelm Sasnal and Adrián Villar Rojas. By way of reworking iconic works from the history of art, these three artists reflect on man’s domination throughout history as well as on his potential demise.

Maurizio Cattelan La ballata di Trotski 1996

The man who capsizes, at the pool level, displays works by Giovanni Anselmo, Maurizio Cattelan, Ian Cheng, Andrea Crespo, Alberto Giacometti, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, PierreHuyghe, Yves Klein, Mark Leckey, Henri Matisse, Philippe Parreno, Bunny Rogers and Kiki Smith.

This sequence is inspired by the body in all its forms, from the most tangible to the most imaginary, taking The Man who capsizes (1950-1951) by Alberto Giacometti as its starting point, around which a set of four other works by the artist is presented.

Head curator: Suzanne Pagé

Curators: Angéline Scherf, Ludovic Delalande and Claire Staebler

The exhibition will run until 27th August.

For more information visit fondationlouisvuitton.fr