Rising stars of the French art world showcased at Hiscox Art Projects
The Day After Tomorrow – recent graduates from Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts, Paris
Dates: 26 April – 30 June 2006
Venue: Hiscox Art Projects, 1 Great St Helen’s, London, EC3A 6HX
A fake Parisian Metro exit, a naked businessman and a countdown to the weekend are amongst the concepts and newly commissioned works featuring in an exhibition by top French graduates at Hiscox Art Projects from 26 April – 30 June 2006.
The five artists are all graduates of the prestigious Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts in Paris and have been selected for the exhibition by Hiscox curator Elliot McDonald from their degree show in 2005.
Elliot McDonald, curator, Hiscox Art Projects said: “The French art scene has steadily grown in dynamism and international profile in recent years through new galleries, public spaces and exciting curators. The talented graduates now emerging from France’s foremost art school reflect this shift and we are delighted to be bringing their work to a wider audience.”
Hiscox Art Projects is a gallery that also functions as a busy City café used by employees and others from outside the office. Several artists have taken inspiration from the business people using the space, exploring ideas of identity and communication.
- Anna Chkolnikova has left clothes folded up and a suit jacket on the back of a chair in the cafe, suggesting that somewhere in the City is a naked businessman who has left his belongings behind. On the outside of the Hiscox building a sign counts down the days until the weekend. On the inside of the building she has displayed drawings which combine collage with computer graphics.
- Ali Zitouni creates collages using food packaging based on the traditional pattern of the zellij, an Arabic letter. A French Moroccan, Zitouni’s work explores the duality of his upbringing and the double meaning of the French word composer which means to compose and to compromise.
- Cyril Dietrich has created sculptural portraits of three strangers he met on the streets of Paris. The abstract constructions are accompanied by a recording of each of their lives and the resulting sculptures relate to Dietrich’s response to their life histories.
- Fabrice Parizy’s work for Hiscox comprises a pale blue cube which seemingly passes through the glass wall of the Hiscox café into the street outside. Parizy sees the work as an invitation to those passing by. Like much of Parizy’s work, the cube plays with ideas of transparency, volume and space.
- Elise Delattre and Nicolas Richard are responsible for the Metro exit constructed on the pavement outside Hiscox’s offices. For a previous exhibition, they have built a life-size model helicopter.
For further information including images please contact:
For further general information about Hiscox Art Projects please contact:
Acknowledgements
Anna Chkolnikova would like to thank Alexander Julian Private Reserve.
About Hiscox Art Projects
Hiscox Art Projects is a contemporary exhibition space situated in the London office of Europe’s foremost specialist insurer of high value homes and fine art. Hiscox's aim is to make exciting contemporary collections and exhibitions readily accessible to those living and working in the City, as well as the wider art community.
Hiscox Art Collection
Hiscox enjoys uncovering and encouraging emerging talent, and has a collection including work by a strong selection of Young British Artists, such as Gavin Turk and Mark Wallinger.
About Hiscox plc
Hiscox plc is a specialist insurance group listed on the London Stock Exchange where it has a market capitalisation of circa £880 million. There are three main underwriting parts of the Group - Hiscox Global Markets, Hiscox UK and Europe, and Hiscox International. Hiscox Global Markets underwrites mainly internationally traded business in the London Market, generally large or complex business which needs to be shared with other insurers or needs the international licences of Lloyd’s. Hiscox UK and Hiscox Europe offer a range of specialist insurance for professionals and business customers, as well as high net worth individuals. Hiscox International includes offshore operations in Bermuda and Guernsey and our new business in the USA.