Gaëlle Choisne, a talented 39-year-old French-Haitian artist, has been awarded the prestigious Prix Marcel Duchamp, France's top art accolade. This recognition comes with a €35,000 grant and a two-year residency at the renowned Sèvres – Manufacture and Musée Nationaux, providing her with an opportunity to create and showcase her work on a larger scale.
The announcement was made by the Centre Pompidou, where Choisne is currently exhibiting her work. She expressed her excitement about having a significant space in the exhibition, which will allow for an immersive experience that aligns well with her artistic vision.
As an artist of African descent, Gaëlle Choisne creates art that combines photography, sculpture, and installation. She is inspired by the work of British author and critic Ekow Eshun, and Pan-Africanist Nioussérê Kalala Omotunde. Driven by a desire for reparation and healing, her work aims to create transgenerational and fictional families and explore social and environmental dynamics.
Choisne's installation for the Prix Marcel Duchamp, titled L’Ère du Verseau, reflects her personal mysticism and features large paintings on wooden panels with mysterious inscriptions. Her installation features a unique blend of materials and media, creating a sensorial journey that engages viewers in a compelling narrative.
Choisne's work is characterized by a combination of documentary techniques and raw materials, addressing sociopolitical themes through photography, video, and sculpture. Her installation at the Centre Pompidou includes dyed black cork structures reminiscent of volcanic landscapes, large painted panels adorned with found objects, and hive-like forms that project video sequences. This immersive environment invites viewers to explore the complexities of her themes.
Her installation at the Centre Pompidou was described as a “temporal and sensorial journey in a recomposed space,” by Séverine Pierron, the editor-in-chief of Centre Pompidou Magazine.
Pierron described various elements of the installation: "On the floor: dyed, black concretions made of cork, like a volcanic beach; on the walls: large painted panels adorned with a collection of various found items; in the centre: hive-like structures, also made of cork, from which video sequences are projected."
In addition to Choisne, the other finalists for the Prix Marcel Duchamp included Abdelkader Benchamma, Noémie Goudal, and the duo Angela Detanico & Rafael Lain. Each finalist is showing their work at the Centre Pompidou, contributing to a rich dialogue on contemporary art in France.
Choisne's artistic journey has seen her work featured in notable exhibitions, including the 2021 New Museum Triennial and the Gwangju Biennale in South Korea. Based between Paris and Berlin, she continues to push boundaries in her artistic practice, combining form and content to provoke thought and conversation.
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