Press Kit

Production et diffusion d’art contemporain
48 avenue Sergent Maginot, f-35000 Rennes
+33 (0)2 90 09 64 11
[email protected] - www.40mcube.org
Press Kit
Here’s the Spheres ;p
Antoine Dorotte
Les Champs Libres - Rennes (France)
Curated by 40mcube
Opening : Friday April 19, 2013 at 6:30 pm
Exhibition : Friday April 19, 2013 to Sunday April 20, 2014.
Press relations : Cyrille Guitard - +33 (0)2 90 09 64 11 - [email protected]
Contents
Press release........................................................................... 3
Biography............................................................................... 4
Images.................................................................................. 5
Text....................................................................................... 6
40mcube................................................................................ 8
Practical informations..............................................................11
Production et diffusion d’art contemporain
48 avenue Sergent Maginot, f-35000 Rennes
+33 (0)2 90 09 64 11
[email protected] - www.40mcube.org
Press release
Here’s the Spheres ;p
Antoine Dorotte
Invited to take on the hall of Les Champs Libres, Antoine Dorotte presents two massive
sculptures that bring science fiction and offer a journey and a multiplication of points of
view on this building realized by famous architect Christian de Portzamparc.
Protean, Antoine Dorotte’s work constantly surprises, following his own logic, with an evolution always unpredictable
despite the recurrent use of some materials. From figurative drawing, he rapidly went on to engraving on paper or
zinc in order to make animated films and sculptures. With his initial universe made of comic strips, illustration,
thrillers and videos games, he slowly departs from any forms of narration to develop instead a more abstract work
still relying on the atmosphere shaped by his references. His artworks can be outside sculptures or installations
at the scale of a building. Since 2010, he is realising a series of spheres with engraved zinc scales, between metal
flower and unidentified object, which have taken place on Anglet’s seaside, in the jardin des Tuileries and at
40mcube during his personal exhibition in 2012.
The relationship with architecture in general and with Christian de Portzamparc and Les Champs Libres is clear.
From this observation came the idea to ask Antoine Dorotte to confront his sculptures with this building. Thus, the
artist presents in Les Champs Libres’ entrance hall Una Misteriose Bola, zinc scales sphere of 5 meters in diameter
and a new piece made for this place, Bulbulux. This second sphere pierces through the main building, showing on
the ceiling of the entrance hall and on the roof, visible from the different floors of the library. A discreet ray of
light runs through it, making the sphere a call to an imaginary world. Little sisters of the growth of the “Espace
des sciences”, those two sculptures create a link between volumes and entities, multiplying the perspectives on
the work but also on the architecture. Antoine Dorotte’s artistic intervention, in its entirety, forces movement and
offers another reading of the environment.
This exhibition takes place at Les Champs Libres - 10 cours des Alliés, F-35000 Rennes
Curated by 40mcube
From Friday April 19, 2013 to Sunday April 20, 2014
Opening : Friday April 19, 2013 at 6:30 pm
Opening times : Tuesday to Friday from 12 am to 7 pm, Saturday and Sunday from 2 pm to 7 pm. Open until 9 pm on Tuesday.
Closed on Monday and on bank holidays.
Press relations : Cyrille Guitard ([email protected] - +33 (0)2 90 09 64 11).
High resolution images available for editorial coverage.
Partners
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Antoine Dorotte
Born in 1976 in Sens (France).
Lives and works in Paris (France).
Antoine Dorotte is represented by ACDC gallery (Bordeaux - France).
STUDIES
2004
Master’s degree in fine art (DNSEP) – École supérieure des beaux-arts de Quimper.
SOLO SHOWS (selection)
2013
2012
2010
2009
2008
2007
Here's the Spheres ;p – Les Champs Libres, Rennes (France). Curated by 40mcube.
Forte taille en eau douce – Galerie Édouard Manet, Gennevilliers (France).
Analnathrach – 40mcube, Rennes (France).
Point de trame – Galerie Artem, Quimper (France).
Module – Palais de Tokyo, Paris (France).
Les combinaisons noires – ACDC gallery, Bordeaux (France).
Clash – ACDC gallery, Brest (France).
Pas un jour sans une ligne – Collections de Saint-Cyprien, Saint-Cyprien (France).
Sur un coup d’surin – Musée des beaux-arts, Bordeaux (France).
GROUP SHOWS (selection)
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2004
Un premier regard – Archives départementales, Rennes (France).
Se souvenir de la mer – Domaine départemental du château d'Avignon (France).
L'art du fragment – La Vieille Église, Mérignac (France).
Présomption d'insouciance – Maison Guerlain, Paris (France).
La dent et le couteau – Galerie In Extenso, Clermont-Ferrand (France).
RN 137 (second part) – 40mcube, Rennes (France).
FIAC Outdoor – Tuileries garden, Paris (France).
Anglet Biennale – Anglet (France).
RN 137 (first part) – L’Atelier, Nantes (France).
Young European Artists Biennale – Klaipèda (Lituanie).
Dynasty – Musée d’art moderne de la Ville de Paris and Palais de Tokyo, Paris (France).
Young European Artists Biennale – La Fabrique, Montrouge (France).
Outer Space ou The Drake Equation – ACDC gallery, Bordeaux (France).
Contemporary Art Fair – Montrouge (France).
Art Rotterdam – ACDC gallery, Rotterdam (Pays-Bas).
Slick Art Fair – ACDC gallery, Paris (France).
L’art de la promenade, c’est de savoir se perdre – Cornouaille Theater, Quimper (France).
Welcome Home 2 – Nantes (France).
Slick Art Fair – ACDC gallery, Paris (France).
Speed Dating 2 (Fast & Furious) – Zoo galerie, Nantes (France).
Wild West Bunch – ACDC gallery, Brest (France).
Skateboarding Is Not Ice Cream – France Langouste, Douarnenez (France).
Encrage – France Langouste, Douarnenez (France).
Singuliers Multiples 3 – Galerie Artem, Quimper (France).
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Images
Antoine Dorotte, Move it piano, 2009, 16 mm film, etching and aquatinting on zinc.
Courtesy ACDC gallery.
Antoine Dorotte, Bloom From Shop of Horrors, 2012, anthracite zinc, fountain mechanism, copper sulphate, Ø 250 cm.
Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy ACDC gallery.
Photo : Patrice Goasduff.
Antoine Dorotte, Aka Black Mamba, 2012, aquatinting on zinc.
Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy ACDC gallery.
Photo : Patrice Goasduff.
Antoine Dorotte, Una misteriosa bola, 2011,
zinc, steel, wood, Ø 500 cm.
Courtesy ACDC gallery. Photo : Émeric Ducreux.
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Venus in Surf
Tangi Belbeoc’h
In his series of documentaries on the history of
American cinema, Martin Scorsese defines a category
of directors as “smugglers”. Under the pretext of
very codified genres – film noir, western, etc – those
B-movie directors developed themes and styles
radically opposed to mainstream cinema. The time of
the Hays code is long gone, but I like to see Antoine
Dorotte as a modern avatar of those smugglers, that
would subvert the immediately identifiable clichés of
cinema, comic strips, particularly of engraving, and,
through it, of the whole history of western art. This
process of subversion/resuscitation of well-established
forms, which can appear to be a constant in his work,
has already led him to carry out, image by image, a
variation on West Side Story’s knife fight: Sur un coup
d’surin, animation composed of merely two hundred
engraved plates. His new opus takes us further back in
time: Move it piano uses and amplifies some elements
of the previous device, going from the Hollywoodian
1950s to 1910s serial (this pre-industrial era of the
cinematograph that seems to tune in with his almost
traditional way of working), and from the DVD to the
film – all that to have Musidora act in a surf movie.
Who What When Where? Once again we are caught up
in a game of mirrors designed to mislead the viewer.
Irma Vep has left the Parisian rooftops for the Pacific
waves, but it is once again on zinc that her silhouette
is engraved; her black suit between silk and neoprene;
and it is hard to tell what her grimace owe to the effort
or to the expressionist act of the actress: part of the
mysteries of 1900 surf… The technique, rather than
reminding us the pop collages, seems to be the one
used by Max Ernst in his albums or in the transitions
between the shots in Un Chien andalou: playing with
superposition and double meaning, masking the links.
Was not Musidora a surrealist muse?
Many aspects of this work seem to be linked to this
movement, unpopular today but that has influenced
half of the 20th century: a mermaid that appears
between the waves only to disappear again; a female
vampire, femme fatale with a sharp dagger. Add to all
this a taste for the beautiful image, Méryon, Bresdin
and the raging Old Ocean – we have all the ingredients
of an exaggerated nineteenthism. Hell yeah! A young
and sensual escapee from the confessional is on the
run. Beware she’s got a knife! But while the surrealists
rekindle ancient myths with a modern form, Antoine
D., on the contrary uses classical techniques to
reproduce in an almost mimetic manner a video found
on internet – because we are talking about surf here
as a sort of new-look style figure.
No need to slow down on an image, one chasses the
next, the brevity of the loop emphasises it. The filmobject comes out of the assembly line of a single worker.
It is a mechanism where the monomaniac engraving
of a plate almost identical to the previous and not
so different from the next, is associated with the
backwash of the ocean and the final loop of the film.
No blending nor editing: the 3 x 6 can be harmonious,
there is nothing discrete about the final cut and if the
heroine is twisting herself in the foam that everyone
will interpret as he or she wishes, the background has
more to do with Tintin. What an incredible story this
could have been… but no. It is the exoticism without
the tale, the Caribbean without the pirates and strict
combinatorial rules governing the project. Like the
vampires of Feuillade, the gangsters that have nothing
supernatural about them, the author moves forward
masked. The engraving, image that is by nature upside
down, becomes the place of the negative – negative of
the image and backside of the décor, distant reflection
of a suggested story.
Despite this mechanist wish, a clear melancholia
emerges from the images – what remains paradoxical
for surfing, even though we have gone from fluoro
to black and white, and especially grey, this running
grey of aquatints. The work thus oscillates between
romantism and ironical detachment, oceanic and
parodic sentiment. Should we only focus on the
desire to dye the palm trees in black – by spleen or
to mock postcards? This ambivalence, looked at as a
fight in Sur un coup d’surin, here takes surfing as a
metaphor. Maybe should we see those two artworks
as experiences for a modern Frankenstein: sometimes
boxing rings where we resuscitate the dead to better
kill them, sometimes strange surfing sessions on the
crest between Hawaii and Ouija.
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40mcube
Founded in 2001, 40mcube is an exhibition space, an office of organization for contemporary art projects and a studio
for the fabrication of works of art, based in Rennes (France). 40mcube’s principal activity is art production, where
there exists a close interaction with the artist through all aspects of the process including its feasibility, technique,
fabrication, up until the presentation and public mediation.
This process of production, from expositions to mediation, is made through a reflection on contemporary art, which is
further shown through 40mcube’s published editions. Edited through a collaboration with partners of editing houses
and distributors, these publications are available in bookstores.
40mcube has developed several different sectors that act as a part of the organization: 40mcube – exposition;
40mcube – edition; 40mcube AV, which co-produces with the audiovisual sector of artists’ videos; 40mcube – espace
public, which works with artistic projects taking place in a public space, notably the project Chantier public and the
operation Nouveaux commanditaires created by the Fondation de France.
40mcube occupies an industrial building that includes an exhibition space of 170m², an office, a documentation room,
a studio for artists in residence, which all exists on a plot of 1100m² divided into three sections: a courtyard, a patio,
and a garden. Considered a public place, this exterior site will be used to house artistic projects with the same statute
as the exhibitions as well as works of a more permanent nature, which will eventually lead to the creation of an urban
sculpture park.
Artistic programming from 2001 to 2013 (selection)
- Street Painting #7, Lang/Baumann
- Night Sound, Hippolyte Hentgen
- Here’s the Spheres ;p, Antoine Dorotte
- Avec une bonne prise de conscience des divers segments du corps, votre geste sera plus précis dans l’eau, Loïc Raguénès.
- AGGER, Marion Verboom.
- Gisement et Extraction, Naïs Calmettes et Rémi Dupeyrat.
- Analnathrach, Antoine Dorotte.
- RN 137, Antoine Dorotte, Angélique Lecaille, Briac Leprêtre, Bevis Martin & Charlie Youle, Benoît-Marie Moriceau, Armand
Morin, Samir Mougas, Julien Nédélec, Blaise Parmentier, Ernesto Sartori, Yann Sérandour, Mélanie Vincent.
- Stranger by Green, Yann Gerstberger.
- « We can never go back to Manderley », Sarah Fauguet & David Cousinard.
- Smears, Ida Tursic & Wilfried Mille.
- Use Once and Destroy, Stéphanie Cherpin.
- INGENIUM, Emmanuelle Lainé.
- Espèces d’hybrides, Guillaume Constantin, Vincent Ganivet, Laurent Perbos, Guillaume Poulain, Aurore Valade.
- L’enclos, Lina Jabbour.
- Trout Farm, Samir Mougas.
- Abstract Lady Guardian, Florian & Michaël Quistrebert.
- Anachronismes et autres manipulations spatio-temporelles #2 : Universalisme, Renaud Auguste-Dormeuil, Dionis Escorsa,
Michel Guillet, Amala Hély & Guillaume Robert, Nicolas Milhé.
- Anachronismes et autres manipulations spatio-temporelles #1 : Particularismes, Virginie Barré, Joost Conijn, Dora Garcia,
Briac Leprêtre, Damien Mazières, Nicolas Milhé, Yann Sérandour, Joana Vasconcelos.
- Psycho, Benoît-Marie Moriceau.
- Optrium, Patrice Gaillard & Claude.
- Chantier public #3, Sylvie Reno.
- Les Biches, Nathalie Djurberg, Rodolphe Huguet, Steven Le Priol, Edouard Levé.
- TERMINATOR, Hubert Duprat, Jon Mikel Euba, Rodolphe Huguet, Angélique Lecaille, Delphine Lecamp, NG.
- L’Ambassade des possibles, Virginie Barré, Julien Celdran, Philippe Parreno, Sébastien Vonier.
- Even Cow-girls Get the Blues, Delphine Lecamp.
- Colloque « Comment faire tenir une forme colorée dans l’espace?* », Luc Deleu, Simona Denicolai & Ivo Provoost, Benoît
Goetz, Eva Gonzales-Sancho, Odile Lemée, Christophe Le Gac ; Maison du Champs de Mars – Rennes.
- Classic & Smart, Briac Leprêtre.
- Chantier public #2, atelier mobile, Simona Denicolai & Ivo Provoost, Daniel Dewar & Grégory Gicquel, Le Gentil Garçon,
Nicolas Milhé, Benoît-Marie Moriceau, Bénédicte Olivier – 40mcube, Centre d’Information sur l’Urbanisme, Le Coin, galerie
du Centre Culturel Colombier, Orangerie du Thabor, espace public (Rennes).
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Artistic programming from 2001 to 2013 (selection)
- Chronique d’une œuvre annoncée, Stéfanie Bourne - Castel coucou (Forbach), École supérieure d’art de Metz, Tramway
(Glasgow).
- EXTRA, Patrice Gaillard et Claude.
- Au tableau, Cécile Desvignes.
- Chantier public #1, Lara Almarcegui, Matthieu Appriou, Yves Gendreau, Patrice Goasduff, Stalker – 40mcube, Centre
d’architecture et d’art, Centre d’information sur l’urbanisme, LENDROIT, espace public (Rennes).
- Projets de projets, Jean-Philippe Lemée et Yves Trémorin – 40mcube, Galerie Art et Essai (Rennes).
- L’inconnu des grands horizons, Abraham Poincheval et Laurent Tixador – 40mcube (Rennes), Frac Basse-Normandie (Caen),
École supérieure d’art de Metz.
- Total symbiose, Abraham Poincheval et Laurent Tixador.
- Là-bas tout près, Anabelle Hulaut.
- 40mcube de Valérie Travers, Valérie Travers.
- Alma Skateshop, Daniel Dewar et Grégory Gicquel.
Works produced by 40mcube 2001 - 2012 (selection)
Marion Verboom, Mondmilchs, 2012, mortar, 6 elements, 280 × 26 × 15 cm, variable dimensions.
Produced by 40mcube. Photo : Aurélien Mole.
Nicolas Milhé, Meurtrière, 2012, concrete, stainless steel,
200 × 300 × 25 cm. Coproduced by Samy Abraham gallery, 40mcube,
Buy-Sellf. Courtesy Samy Abraham gallery. View of the scupture during the FIACOutdoor 2012. Photo : Marc Domage.
Emmanuelle Lainé, Doline, 2010, rope casted plaster and concrete
canvas. Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy Triple V gallery.
Photo : André Morin.
Antoine Dorotte, Bloom from Shop of Horrors, 2012, anthracite zinc, fountain
mechanism, copper sulphate, Ø 250 cm. Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy
ACDC gallery. Photo : Patrice Goasduff.
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Samir Mougas, Un chaînon manquant, 2010, polystyrene, fiberglass, polyepoxyde, paint, metal, 400 × 200 × 150 cm. Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy
ACDC gallery. Photo : Patrice Goasduff.
Florian & Michaël Quistrebert, view of the exhibition Abstract Lady Guardian,
2008. Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy Crêvecœur gallery.
Photo : Jean Depagne.
Benoît-Marie Moriceau, Psycho, 2007, mate acrylic paint. Produced by 40mcube.
Photo : Laurent Grivet.
Nicolas Milhé, Sans titre, 2005, concrete, 600 × 300 × 250 cm. Deposit from the
Centre national des arts plastiques - Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication.
Inv. FNAC : 09-281. Producted by 40mcube. View of the sculpture from the place du
Colonel Fabien in Paris during the Biennale de Belleville. Photo : Patrice Goasduff.
Courtesy Samy Abraham gallery.
Patrice Gaillard & Claude, view of the exhibition Optrium, 2007.
Produced by 40mcube. Courtesy Lœvenbruck gallery. Photo : Patrice Goasduff.
Daniel Dewar & Grégory Gicquel, Aruba 49cc, 2005. Produced by 40mcube.
Courtesy Lœvenbruck gallery. Photo : Cyrille Guitard.
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Practical informations
Here’s the Spheres ;p
Antoine Dorotte
Les Champs Libres - 10 cours des Alliés, F-Rennes
Curated by 40mcube
Exhibition : 04.19.13 - 04.20.14
Opening : Friday 04.19.13 at 6:30 pm
Open from Tuesday to Friday from 12 am to 7 pm,
on Saturday and Sunday from 2 pm to 7 pm
and on Tuesday until 9 pm
Closed on Monday and on bank holidays
Press relations - Cyrille Guitard - +33 (0)2 90 09 64 11
Underground : Charles de Gaulle
Partners
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