Inspirational Curators

Anna Labouze and Keimis Henni are French curators, and the founders and directors of Artagon, an association supporting young artists’ professional development between Pantin and Marseille. The duo are the artistic directors of Les Magasins Généraux, a hybrid cultural center with a strong focus on emerging talents and tendencies, created by BETC in Pantin in the northeastern suburbs of Paris. They were also the curators of the first Contemporaine de Nîmes triennial in 2024. Motivated by the desire to ‘broaden the scope of art,’ they believe in social practice, which views art as a powerful tool for societal change – one that can be sometimes even more effective than other forms of action. While they often collaborate with well-known artists, their work doesn’t primarily target the cultural elite but instead focuses on formats and content designed for the communities in the neighborhoods they serve.

This work is called Le village de Valentine Gardiennet.

At first glance, what might resemble the enlargement of a child's or teenager's bedroom, a theatre set under construction, a reconstructed crime scene, or an abandoned amusement park, turns out to be an ode to the collective and the necessity of togetherness to move forward in art and life. It is a huge house made of cardboard paste and decorated with huge dolls and fantastical creatures coming right out of a pop art, multicolored dream. It is the notion of a village, a collective creation with monsters, creatures, dolls as the main protagonists which inhabit the space and collectively create the symbolic space that becomes the habitation, where the supposedly "living" public will come to appreciate the inert dolls.

This exhibition lasted two months and is an exhibition-residence, which means there are numerous activities organized too for the public and the artists, such as workshops, guided tours, concerts, etc...