VIVE LA FRANCE !the Brilliant Ecclectism in Paris

The LIZA FETISSOVA gallery presents "VIVE LA FRANCE! », The informed, radiant and resistant eclecticism of 9 French photographers in an exhibition on the before and after! In partnership with Galerie DUREV Events, 56 bd de la Tour Maubourg, Paris 7th
-VERNISSAGE: July 7;
EXHIBITION: July 8 to August 29, 2020.
Open Tuesday-Saturday 2 pm-7pm.

I have been Parisian for 20 years ... the French, I got to know them in this city. I master the French language thanks to this city. It was here that I fell in love with photography, which has taken up so much of my life. This is where my son was born. For me, Paris is France, in a way (don't get me wrong!). In this city full of noise, passers-by, the hubbub of crowds or demonstrations, restaurants, life ... where most neighborhoods do not know the silence ... it is here that we saw the the most radical, the most glaring, the most obvious change: from 'before' and 'after' the pandemic. From full to empty, to half full. A real time to pause, in suspense ... A review! Everyone has experienced this confinement as best they can. And now, that we are relearning, that I am relearning to breathe, to go out, to make plans (holidays, again - we are in France), I would like to manage to capture this unique moment of rediscovery and intense observation. With photography, of course. The exhibition Vive la France! tries to capture, tenderly, with a touch of gentle irony, the empty and not empty city of Paris.

Paris, which is only apparently empty, and these photographic metaphors are like the keys to an enigma, possible leads: what happens behind the curtains and the drawn blinds? What gives us strength and hope? In fact, how to apprehend the void? Don't be afraid of it? Do you hear your footsteps echoing in the deserted rooms of the Palace of Versailles (by Patrick Tourneboeuf)? The vertiginous red walls with the beautiful patinas absorb us and transport us to another dimension ... their abstract work force is in counterpoint with the monumental painting of Horace Vernet in the background "The taking of the smalah by Abd elKader by the Duke of Aumale in Taguin, May 16, 1843 "carried out on site in 1843, which brings us back to our human realities. Unless you prefer to stay in the unknown of the abstract? You can't think of Paris without the Eiffel Tower ... under a bell (by Philippe Tarabella) or under pretty legs (by Pierre Boulat). She always stands proudly, against all odds. Is Paris empty? Never ! Its tenacious inhabitants are its ubiquitous sculptures. Some symbolize the firm hand of power and its past victories - like that of Napoleon, an ever unwavering, constant symbol of the Republic and its values. The figures of Rodin's Porte de l'Enfer, sublimated by Bruno Aveillan, appear to us in the halo of their aura, that of a work of art, but also of the human, in its expressions of power as well as resistance. or forfeiture.

There are also anonymous statues, like the one in the photo of Philippe Tarabella - without arms. It is all in tenderness, in femininity, as an abbreviated desire. It reminds us of ourselves, unable to achieve our aspirations, forced to reduce physical contact with others to nothing. Alain Cornu's windows perfectly recreate the atmosphere of the city in suspense as if put on hold. And we can only adore its reflections, its curves, their unique plastic. This city tells us that it is free, independent, beautiful and that it can even do without us! Otherwise, she could also revolt - and the fire of Notre-Dame on the photographs of Cyrus Cornut will put us in our place, that of small beings, powerless before the anger of the Gods of Paris. Fortunately Madame la Flore, beautiful nature gives us color, resistance. How to find inspiration in a pile of fruits and vegetables.

These and the photographer, Régis Figarol, are locked up without permission to leave? Crowded, cramped, each shows itself so little, but our eyes extend the contours well, the skin smooth, velvety or rough, faceted, which lends itself to caresses. You can even smell them. Clearly, our senses were sharpened during this confinement! Finally, Angel de Munter's flowers are a sip of color in a hollow period, plants that the artist passes in black and white to then re-color them as he pleases: the form remains intact, but not the content. Another lesson in life? Are we still going to allow the presence of a few humans in this gathering?
Three style icons in the photos of the legendary Roger Schall - Coco Chanel, Marlène Dietrich and a young Demoiselle - to put our backs straight, eyes high, to make people love the timeless - Parisian chic. Chic that cannot be learned and without which Paris would not be the same. 

Vive la France! Vive la Vie!