The Preview was Tomorrow
This quadriptych consists of a Polaroid and three posters. Inspired by the history of monochrome, Pierre-Olivier Arnaud uses only the colour grey and its infinite shades. By moving from positive to negative, the two central pieces with the palm trees make the transition from black to overexposure. After several operations he describes as “de-sublimation,” the image is washed out until the motif dissolves, appearing almost ghostly. The subject then becomes a pretext for a wider reflection on the status of the image, on what is ephemeral and invisible about it. In the tradition of Walter Benjamin, The Preview was Tomorrow questions the depreciation of the work that results from its technical reproducibility. Moreover, the title keeps the spectator in a spatiotemporal fog by playing on anachronism, the preview having already taken place (was) although it will take place tomorrow.
Text written by Margaux Granier as part of the partnership between the École du Louvre and Lafayette Anticipations – Fonds de dotation Famille Moulin.
Exhibitions
La Galerie des Galeries, Paris (France)
from 20 Oct 2009 to 09 Jan 2010
from 09 Jan to 18 Jan 2009
Galerie Art Concept, Paris (France)
from 14 Dec 2007 to 19 Jan 2008
Pierre-Olivier Arnaud
Born in 1972 in Lyon, France
Pierre-Olivier Arnaud ne se considère pas comme un photographe, mais utilise la photographie comme un médium dans son œuvre. Sa démarche repose sur la collecte d’images dans la rue et dans la presse qu’il retravaille ensuite, découpe, agence, reprend en photo, agrandit, désature, etc. De ces multiples traitements naissent de nouveaux ensembles d’images que l’artiste fait entrer en résonance. Sa réflexion se concentre généralement sur la nature même de l’image ainsi que sur ses moyens de production, de diffusion et de consommation.
Né en 1972 à Lyon (France) où il vit et travaille, Pierre-Olivier Arnaud a été diplômé de l’École régionale des beaux-arts de Saint-Étienne en 1996.
