PERGOLA: Al-Amiri, Carron, Posenenske, Spitzer, Zarka

PERGOLA 1916 – Le Corbusier builds a "Villa Turque" (Turkish Villa), the Villa Schwob, flanked by a pergola, in La Chaux-de-Fonds (Switzerland). Some years later, he publishes photos of it in L'Esprit Nouveau. On the ground, in front of the villa, a white smear betrays retouching: the pergola has disappeared from the reproduction. Less than a century later, the Iraqi journalist Mountazer al-Zaïdi throws his shoes at George W. Bush's head.

POLTERGEISTS PERGOLA rises out of the depths of a modernity haunted by everything that it has eradicated. Valentin Carron – himself author of an artwork also entitled Pergola (2001) – creates in Palais de Tokyo's main space a universe evocative of a museum guardian's bad dream. In this space, sculptures summon modern art, but hanging from the glass ceiling, sombre lanterns recall a Swiss tavern. The walls, covered in grey stucco, borrow as many elements from a suburban home as they do from an isolated ghetto.

OVERHEAD KICK In their afterlives, through upheavals and uprisings, the victims that were once erased from modernity speak out in the form of a giant shoe: a monument created by Laith Al-Amiri in homage to the loafer thrown by the Iraqi journalist at George W. Bush's head. Forgotten forms take shape and materialize in the public spaces and, in doing so, demand equal treatment. In the works of Raphaël Zarka, Renaissance forms fraternize with skateboard ramps or breakwaters. Serge Spitzer's deranged system of pneumatic dispatch challenges all forms of communication. Charlotte Posenenske's artwork is emblematic of the politics of the spectre that lay the foundation for a communism of substances.

CHARLOTTE POSENENSKE PERGOLA provides an opportunity to experience the first retrospective ever shown in France of the major German artist Charlotte Posenenske, who was a contemporary of the American minimalists. A unique path led her from a modernist practice of abstract painting to a militant approach to three-dimensional space. Her last installations were composed of galvanized steal tubes, which the curator could distribute at will. Between her use of elementary materials and the artwork's price roughly equivalent to the production cost, her approach is clearly political: "I have trouble resigning myself to the idea that art will not contribute to the resolution of current social issues," said Posenenske, who performed by installing her works in public spaces in order to subvert monumentalism as well as to celebrate silent productive forces. Following her own reasoning to its extreme, she left behind all artistic activities in order to dedicate herself to sociology in 1968.

THURSDAYS OF PERGOLA / DU COR DES ALPES AUX IMAGES-OISEAUX

COR DES ALPES The opening of Pergola to the sound of the Alpine horns with Balthasar Streiff and Ruedi Linder, musicians of the "quatuor Hornroh" (Swiss). FEBRUARY 18th / 7:30PM

LIVING ARCHITECTURES Projection of Living Architectures, an exceptional experience of a full immersion in the daily life of the masterpieces of contemporary architecture of recent years: Rem Koolhaas, Herzog and de Meuron, Frank Gehry, Richard Meier and Renzo Piano. (Produced by Ila Bêka and Louise Lemoine, in the presence of the directors). FEBRUARY 25th / 7:30PM

JEU DE LA THEORIE Created by Patrice Maniglier, the "Jeu de la Théorie" ("Theory Game") gathers philosophers to confront each other around a thematic. MARCH 04TH / 7:30PM

MUD ORCHESTRA Raphaël Zarka invites MUD Orchestra (Mathieu K. Abonnenc, Jason Glasser, Charlie Jeffery et Dan Robinson). MARCH 11TH / 7:30PM

ESPACE PUBLIC When art and architecture take an interest in public space. With Elie During, Bastien Gallet, Chris Younès + guests. MARCH 18TH / 7:30PM

FACE B Architectural journal Face b invites Felix Burricher, architect and fonder of Pin up (New York), Charles Jenks, architect, historian and critic (London - subject to confirm) and Cédric Libert, architect, Anorak Agency (Belgium) at the release of its third issue. MARCH 25TH / 7:30PM

LECTURES Nathalie Richard reads from the final opus of Céline Minard, Olimpia (Denoël), and Donatienne Michel-Dansac (subject to confirm) reads excerpts from the Guy Lelong's book. APRIL 1ST / 7:30PM

RHYS CHATAM Important figure in the 1980s New York underground, the trumpeter Rhys Chatham plays new unreleased tracks from his upcoming album with guest musicians Jean-Marc Montera (guitar) and Kevin Shea (drums). APRIL 8TH / 7:30PM. Advance booking necessary, jeudis@palaisdetokyo.com

AUTOUR DE CHARLOTTE POSENENSKE Rendez-vous with Paul Maenz, art collector based in Berlin and Renate Wiehager, art historian and director of the Daimler Collection (Berlin), around Charlotte Posenenske. APRIL 15TH / 7:30PM

DAVID WAMPACH David Wampach, French choreographer, presents two performances: Batterie and Battement. APRIL 22TH / 7:30PM

MEMBRES FANTOMES In the cerebral cortex. Angela Sirigu (CNRS, Centre de Neuroscience Cognitive) describes the phenomenon of phantom limbs. MAY 06TH / 7:30PM

MAGAZINE PALAIS / Issue 11 Entirely conceived around CHASING NAPOLEON

PERGOLA
Laith Al-Amiri, Valentin Carron, Charlotte Posenenske, Serge Spitzer, Raphael Zarka