Ben: L'art est ce qu'il est je suis ce que je suis
24 May24 August 2019

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For Ben

The times are amnesic. It celebrates those who “perform” over and over again, suggesting that they are thwarting the system. Plus an exposure without the presence of the body. Plus a project without a multidisciplinary dimension. Plus a demonstration without reconciliation of opposites. Art is everywhere and every appointment is there to prove it. The dissensus is damaged in complacent representations. The misfortunes of the world are portrayed with the idea of being witnesses and accusers. The good conscience does its job and that’s it.

Ben Vautier sees the world differently. Sixty years since he wrote to us and sent us back to our vain vanities. Sixty years since he has been fencing and expressing himself, struggling and igniting himself in a jumble of tragedy and farce, suffering and joy, pros and cons. Praise of the difficulty of being oneself, self-criticism of the ego, aphorisms of all kinds. Ben is there, between truth and lies, between impertinence and wisdom. Ben is a necessary artist. From the late 1950s to today, Ben has been directing and staging himself in a world that fears and amuses him. Ben vociferous and stormy. He writes and apostrophes. He gestures and speaks

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