Pierre Paulin: Boom boom, run run

Curator: Xavier Franceschi

At le plateau, from September 21 to December 17, 2017, frac île-de-france presents the first monographic exhibition to be dedicated to Pierre Paulin. Comprising of mainly new works, Boom boom, run run continues to express the artist’s interest in language, appearing here in a multitude of forms, from poetry, essay and translation, to prêt-à-porter.

There is a tight correlation between Pierre Paulin’s work and contemporary visual culture. Use of the term "look," whether in describing his poetic work or the outfits that he produces, is the common thread throughout his writing and art practices based on the combination and translation of formats and cultural symbols.

In this context, Pierre Paulin’s work is similar to the composition of a fashion "look" that, like a poem built upon a common language, is perched on a frail strategy enabling some measure of the feeling of individuality to be retained.

How can one express a singular look through mass-produced clothes that are reassembled day after day? How can one achieve a sense of personal expression by means of a combination of words whose meaning precedes us?

From clothing to text, from the body to words, in the footsteps of William Blake, Pierre Paulin makes no distinction between writing and representation, image and discourse. Text is pervasive, whether in clothes (pockets and linings), in videos carrying the poem’s voice, in books containing free interpretations of theoretical texts translated to be read out loud.

Boom boom, run run is also the title of an essay written by the artist. Punctuated by scansions, it is the poetic ambiance of the exhibition. Starting with a short cultural history of sneakers, this essay recounts from a personal perspective the development of sportswear around concrete poetry. By bringing together the group Run-D.M.C. and the American poet Jack Spicer, this essay likens brand logos to voices through onomatopoeia. It is the guiding principle of the exhibition: logo as the voice of generic poetry.

Born in 1982 in Grenoble, Pierre Paulin lives and works in Paris. The frac île-de-france has a substantial number of his works within its collection and several of them were exhibited at le plateau during the exhibition Interprète (2014). He recently participated in the group exhibition Rien ne nous appartient: offrir at the Fondation Ricard (2017).

Hours: Wednesday–Sunday 2–7pm (late opening each first Wednesday of the month until 9pm)