For the past three years, the Museum of Art and History of Geneva (MAH) has organized XL “carte blanche” exhibitions, which allow internationally renowned artists to take over the MAH’s collection and occupy its rooms by giving free rein to their creativity.
During the first six months of the year, the museum’s spaces are transformed through the eyes of an external curator who addresses various subjects in a way that is as specialized as it is accessible. This approach allows the MAH collections to be understood in an original way, and the visitor to rediscover works that emerge from storage.
Following Jakob Lena Knebl (2021), Jean-Hubert Martin (2022) and then Ugo Rondinone (2023), it is now Wim Delvoye’s turn to curate the XL 2024 exhibition.
This exhibition “The Order of Things: Carte Blanche for Wim Delvoye” runs from January 26 to June 26, 2024. The Belgian visual artist, born in 1965, offers a unique artistic and aesthetic experience and a deep exploration of our relationship with art and the objects that surround us. As an artist passionate about things and artifacts, whether they are recognized works or simple objects, Wim Delvoye invites us to question the seemingly overly rigid boundaries separating art objects from everyday ones. Thus, pieces from the museum’s collection enter into a play of reflections and contrasts with those of Wim Delvoye.
Left: Frank Christian, Nautilus Cup and its case, circa 1680 © Museum of Art and History of Geneva, photo B. Jacot-Descombes; right: Wim Delvoye, Case for a Moped, 2004 © Claudine and Jean-Marc Salomon Collection.
There is no imposed route here. The public is invited to immerse themselves in a joyful and playful abundance of objects, references, and interventions proposed by the Flemish creator in the name of what he himself calls “elegant vandalism.”
In this profusion, it is nevertheless possible to follow a few paths. First, diversion, which consists of stealing an object from its original context and transplanting it into another realm of reality. Thus, a Picasso becomes an obstacle that a giant marble run playfully pierces; cases converse with sarcophagi. Then there are reversals, whether conceptual or physical. The noble becomes trivial, and vice versa; for example, when Wim Delvoye gives a case an importance and splendor that one would rather expect from its contents, thereby questioning our aesthetic hierarchies. Finally, the various juxtapositions give rise to a reflection on the very notion of a collection, on the limits and the beauties of the accumulative gesture.
Left: Wim Delvoye, Nautilus, 2017; right: Wim Delvoye, Rimowa Classic Flight Multiwheel © Studio Wim Delvoye
The Order of Things thus perfectly aligns with the mission of the Fondation Etrillard: this artist playfully creates bridges between the artifacts of the collections of the Museum of Art and History and his own contemporary creations. These dialogues create surprise as much as they probe our relationship with heritage: an approach dear to the Fondation Etrillard.
Antonio Canova, Venus “Italica” or Venus Emerging from the Bath, 1807-1810 © Museum of Art and History of Geneva, photo B. Jacot-Descombes; right: Wim Delvoye, Ball Track Venus Italica, 2023 © Studio Wim Delvoye