“My mother was an artist and saw that it was very difficult to make a living from art. When I grew up I studied programming and graphic design, and on weekends, I used to take my projector to discos and nightclubs. Then I realized that I could make a living from art. I lived in Bristol and had friends with whom we shared similar concerns, I worked with musicians and producers”, points out French artist Joni Lemercier, thanks to the Lima Art Museum (MALI) and the Fundación Telefónica Vigorous Exhibition Presents landscape of light ,pdl,
This biographical accuracy is not capricious, but the key to Lemercier’s current art, because pdl Supports the artist’s reputation in terms of his poetics (the forerunner of videomapping and the recognized demerit of electronic culture, through which he allows himself to establish a dialogue with other expressions, such as pop, which in this His first solo show is also conceivable in South America) but likewise a moral and ethical position that began with an experience that has not yet unfolded.
“Passages de Luz” runs in Mali until 18 December. Source: YouTube.
“A few years ago I was in Germany and I saw a sinkhole in an open pit mine. I wanted to know who was responsible for that disaster and I began to find out more, as the mine affected the residents of that city. This is how my work changes after this experience”, explains Lemercier and he is right: the exhibition is divided into three conceptual layers: the beauty of the landscape, the record of human impact on nature and the interaction with the audience, which is a Invited to an experience that doesn’t happen very often these days: reflection.
“This type of proposal is more commonly seen in digital ghettos, but for 10 years official institutions have been showing openness,” says the curator of pdl: Juliet Bibasse.
“I am an unconventional curator and I believe that institutions have more to do with experts like me to give them an idea of what is art and what is not. Digital art is valid as long as you use it. Know how to use. For me, good art begins with a story that touches me, but it must also have some degree of technical complexity. Without these factors, digital art is empty. Many lies about digital art. It is not just about projecting lights and images”, emphasizes Bibasse.
“Many artists use technology in their works, but the proposal presented lacks critical understanding, low awareness,” says Lemercier.
To which Bibasse says: “In Joni’s case, this mine in Germany was a personal blow that affected her work as well. landscape of light It is a call to take a position in the face of what is happening. COVID is an example that has inspired many to take action. landscape of light reveals not only the work of Lemercier, but also his position before the world in all aspects.”
