TheFrenchArtDealer duo had the artists and Galuchat’s Nathalie Elmaleh had the gallery. A common friend put them in touch and Voilà — may I remind the reader that I am French — this is how the Paris exhibition “Alive” came to life, within the structure of FIAC 2016.
The French title enjoys a double meaning. “En vie” literally means alive. Phonetically speaking, “En-vie” refers to desire and not envy per se, for it holds no sinful connotation. “The point was to take the opposite view of FIAC, by focusing on living Street artists,” Anatole Gillet, one half of TheFrenchArtDealer duo, tells me. The show is tucked away in the prestigious 7th arrondissement of Paris, beyond the legendary Bon Marché in the Secret Gallery, and follows a relatively recent trend for street art to find its way off the street, hereby merging the divide that bit more between what is and isn’t Street art — in fact, France has just inaugurated its very first Street art museum. This former chapel is unique, though it blends into a typical string of Haussmannian buildings.
“I am not a Street art fan”, admits Nathalie Elmaleh, Founder of event management company Galuchat which hosts the show in their pop-up space. “However, I love what Anatole, Audrey and their artists have done with the place”. And what is that exactly? They brought international stars and emerging artists together, including JR, Mist, Speedy Graphito, JonOne, Zepha, Nicolas Barrome Forgues, Amandine Urruty and Youssef Boubekeur. Every canvas offers a burst of colour from the venue’s blackened walls.
Three particular works leave the walls entirely. Alëxone Dizac is responsible for a cubical shed in the middle of the hall, the inside of which is to be appreciated with 3D glasses. Julien Colombier’s use of a mirror within his work creates a piece which sits ambiguously between collage and sculpture. Last but not least, Sébastien Preschoux’s thread-made multicolour piece presides over the central alcove, where the chapel’s altar used to sit.
“There is no organizing art shows on a monthly basis, if only to make business,” says Gillet. “We do make business, of course. We are dealers. Yet, it is crucial that each of our clients meet the artists in their studios. Art is about connecting people”. If spontaneity is the key to their success, it took TheFrenchArtDealer no fewer than six months to implement this pop-up project.
“It still belongs to the diocese. We have been throwing private parties here for more than a year, which shows how open-minded it is”, states Elmaleh. “We rarely open it to the public. My encounter with Anatole and Audrey (the second half of TheFrenchArtDealer), as well as the upcoming FIAC, seemed like a good occasion to expand our horizons”. The result of this fortuitous collaboration is breathtaking. The curators’ goal was to take the visitors, including their host, out of their comfort zone, and they succeed.
‘En Vie‘ runs until 23 October at the Secret Gallery
