Spending time in Paris this spring? Be sure to visit these exhibitions at the city’s top museums, collections, and galleries.
“Metamorphosis. Art in Europe Now”
Fondation Cartier
Now—June 16
After visiting 29 different countries across Europe and viewing nearly 1,000 portfolios, the team at Fondation Cartier selected 21 artists to take part in its group exhibition “Metamorphosis. Art in Europe Now.” Each artist was born between 1980–1994, after the fall of the Berlin wall, and many live in a country other than the one in which they were born—demonstrating the mobility that culturally exists within Europe. Works on view include pieces like Kris Lemsalu’s So Let us Melt and work from Klára Hosnedlová’s “Seated Woman” series, as well as other pieces that highlight the underlying transformative qualities found in each of these artist’s practices.
Giulio Paolini
Galerie Marian Goodman
Now—May 11
Displayed as if it was an installation of scenery for a play, Giolio Paolini’s exhibition of new works includes a set of murals, three-dimensional installations, and limited-edition pieces. Works on view include Retroscena (Una rosa amarilla), L’arte di non esserci, and other works expressing Paolini’s ideas about art and its representation, the figure of the artist, and the gaze of the viewer.
Atelier E.B: Passer-by
Camille Blatrix: Fortune
Lafayette Anticipations
Now—April 28
Fashion label Atelier E.B’s first exhibition in France combines museum design, contemporary creation, and the history of fashion, highlighting the overlap between the areas of art, design, commerce, and display. Entitled “Passer-by,” the exhibition acknowledges fashion consumers as anyone who glances in a shop window, enjoys fashion through books and magazines, or wears clothing themselves. Beginning with a staged showroom featuring the brand’s latest collection, “Jasperwear,” the presentation moves into historical research on topics spanning ancient sculpture, the figure of the mannequin, and department store displays, ending with commissioned works by artists like Markus Proschek and Eileen Quinlan.
Also on view at Lafayette Anticipations is an exhibition of sculptural works by Camille Blatrix entitled “Fortune.” Finding inspiration in the everyday manufactured objects that pile up in our lives, the artist creates elaborate installations made of materials like metal, wood, and plastic, which visitors find displayed in the glass exhibition tower overlooking the surrounding rooftops.
Jean-Michel Othoniel: Oracles
Perrotin Paris
Now—June 8
A body of work composed of fifteen minimalistic glass or metal brick sculptures, Jean-Michel Othoniel’s “Oracles” marks a turning point in the artists career. Othoniel began including the use of bricks in his work after a trip to India in 2019, and has since continued employing the module since, finding it to be a common denominator between many cultures. Included in the exhibition are works like Icebergs (stainless-steel reliefs that outline the imaginary cartography of an ice-covered landscape) and Agora, an architectural mound of mirrored stainless-steel bricks entitled.
Thomas Houseago: Almost Human
Musée d’Art Modern de la Ville de Paris
Now—July 14
Thomas Houseago’s first retrospective in France, “Almost Human,” follows the sculptor’s work from the 1990s to today. Divided into three parts, the show begins with a selection of Houseago’s early anthropomorphic sculptures. Next is a room focused on the artist’s experimental pieces, which make way for his darker, monumental works in the third room. The show features pieces like Wood Skeleton I (Father), “Black Paintings” series, and the tremendous bronze work, Striding Figure II (Ghost), which is displayed on the museum’s esplanade.
