The exhibition Surfaces brings together all ten bas-reliefs created by Adel Abdessemed between 2013 and 2015, most of which have never been shown to the public. With those works, that vary in size from the very large—almost three meters long—to the very small—no more than thirty centimeters—the artist aims to show us scenes that have become invisible in our society of images. Using noble materials—Carrara marble, gold leaf, Siwa salt, Belgian black marble—and more mundane ones—resin, plaster, terra cotta—Adel Abdessemed focuses on the idea of a resurgence towards the surface. From the hanging of Saddam Hussein to the execution of Ceaușescu and the tanks in Tiananmen Square, the great events of contemporary history are here turned into sculptures so we can see them anew. Alongside those visual analyses of the human condition, more intimate images appear; images that seem to exist outside of time and invite us to wonder what it means to exist within the density of the present.
Distribution
Exhibition and program designed in dialogue with Donatien Grau
Production
Courtesy Adel Abdessemed
Realisation Festival d'Avignon