‘Domestikator’, Centre Pompidou, Paris (FR)
Exhibition
Atelier Van Lieshout, Carpenters Workshop Gallery and FIAC are proud to present Domestikator at the Centre Pompidou!
Please join us for the opening event on Thursday the 19th October:
6PM – 9PM: reception and cocktail
7 PM: artist talk by Joep van Lieshout
9PM – 11PM: Cocktail reception at Carpenters Workshop Gallery, 54 rue de la Verrerie 75004
The artwork will host an ongoing series of impromptu discussions, performances and screenings. This Salon will be inaugurated with a discussion between friends and artists Xavier Veilhan and Joep van Lieshout, on Thursday 19th October at 11 AM
After the Musée du Louvre decided the sculpture was too provocative for the Jardin de Tuilleries, the artwork will now be installed at the square next to the Fontaine Stravinsky.
Joep van Lieshout: “I’m very pleased that the Centre Pompidou was able to see beyond the sensationalized interpretations of this work, and offered to present it during FIAC. By exhibiting this work, the institution is not only allowing the public to properly experience its artistic and intrinsic values, but it also opens up a broader discussion about the current challenges and complexities in the relationships between artists, institutions, public, and press – and their subsequent impact on artistic freedom.
Domestikator was always intended to be a catalyst for thought, as it addresses the very serious issue of how humans employ technology – with ingenuity, creativity, sophistication and persistence – to change the world into a “better” place, often domesticating it in the process. In order to push the boundaries of human experience and longevity, we have developed new technologies, like artificial intelligence, genetic manipulation, robotics and industrial farming, which push our ethical borders, without any real understanding of the long term consequences.
I am pleased that visitors to the Pompidou will have the opportunity to experience this work and hope that it generates questions and dialogue around the complexity of the issue of domestication – particularly its inherent hypocrisy, and the disconcerting fact that we are still without any real policy or regulation to govern this increasingly intrepid behavior.
Now, in addition to these meanings, the installation has inadvertently become a catalyst for a conversation about the freedom of expression, which is an urgent topic today. I’d like to express my sincerest gratitude to FIAC, Centre Pompidou, Carpenter’s Workshop Gallery, the city of Paris and my studio team for making this installation possible, and to the public who took to various platforms to voice their opposition to its censorship. I’m truly grateful for everyone’s support.”
A public program will take place around the Domestikator, please check this site or facebook for regular updates!