press release - gerard rancinan2014 - opera gallery release - gerard rancinan2014.pdfpalazzio delle...

OPERA GALLERY LONDON -‐ 134 New Bond Street London W1S 2TF http://www.operagallery.com

RANCINAN XXL

An exhibition of monumental photography 18th March - 3rd April 2014

Opera Gallery London is proud to present Gérard RANCINAN’s monumental art photography in London. The exhibition XXL consists of five monumental photographs, from the Trilogy of the Moderns series. All photographs are unique pieces, numbered 1/1. The photographs presented are all fine art argentic prints on great scale: from 2.80 meters up to 4.70 meters! The very specific printing process is possible only in a single photo-lab located in Düsseldorf, Germany. The scale and format, unique in the world, make these photographs treasured artworks for the collector. For XXL, Rancinan chose to exhibition five of these breath-taking monumental photographs together for the first time ever: at Opera Gallery London, in the heart of London’s arty neighbourhood Mayfair. This exhibition is therefore a rare opportunity for the photography collector and lover. These XXL photographs have travelled the world. Indeed, before being brought together at Opera Gallery London, they were exhibition in museums all over the globe: the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, France; the Triennale Museum in Milan, Italy; the Danubiana Contemporary Art Museum in Bratislava, Slovakia; the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris, France; etc. After London, their next destination will be the Himalayas Museum of Contemporary Art in Shanghai, China and the Oscar Niemeyer Museum in Curitiba, Brazil. From "The Raft of illusions" to "The Feast of The Barbarians", each photograph is a masterpiece reflecting our times: acclaimed photographer Gérard Rancinan is an observer of his contemporaries, bearing first-hand witness to events in our society.


Image (HR available upon request)

Caption: (FR): Gérard Rancinan, « Le Festin des Barbares », 2013

(ENG): Gérard Rancinan, « The Feast of the Barbarians », 2013


Gérard RANCINAN

Born in the Bordeaux region, Gérard Rancinan travels the globe, bearing first hand witness to events of historical importance. Natural catastrophes, civil and ethnic wars, and urban riots… he comes face to face with the complexity of the human condition and the random events by which it is fashioned. His imperious need for self-expression leads him to focus on the world’s most important issues, he delivers startling images filtered through an ever-evolving aesthetic prism.

Constantly breaking down barriers, he is, by turn, an investigator deconstructing the great sagas of contemporary life, and a portraitist. His photographs of athletes, artists, ecclesiastics and politicians have become iconic. His images have earned him a number of prizes, including four prestigious World Press Awards. Following his domain of predilection, in the “Trilogy of the Moderns” he becomes the wakeful observer of his contemporaries. This marginal perspective involves real mises en scène, veritable simulacra of the world in which we live. Internationally renowned, Gérard Rancinan’s work is exhibited in the world’s most prestigious galleries and museums and features in the most important contemporary art collections. During a recent Etude Million auction at Drouot (2008), Gérard Rancinan became one of the highest ranked photographers in France. In 2012, one his photographs was hammered for a total price eight times above the estimation at a Philips de Pury & Company Photographs auction; breaking the world auction record for a living French photographer. Gérard Rancinan is an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters.

EXHIBITIONS / ARTFAIRS Current: Louvre Lens Museum, Lens, France, 2013 - 2018 « The Liberty unveiled » - Immersive Space Bubble Quai d’Orsay, French Ministry of Foreign Affa irs, Paris, France, 2013 - 2014 « Batman Family » Garden of Sculptures, F lag-France Foundation, La Celle-Saint-Cloud's Castle, France, 2013 - 2014 « The Raft of illusions » - Artistic installation


Past : « The Feast of The Barbar ians » Musée des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France, October - November 2013 « The Tr i logy of the Moderns » Danubiana Modern Art Museum of Bratislava, Slovak Republic, May - September, 2013 « Rancinan in Amsterdam » Nieuw Dakota / Fontana Fortuna Gallery, Amsterdam, Netherlands, February - March, 2013 « Rancinan in Geneve » Opera Gallery Geneve, Switzerland, February - March, 2013 « Wonderfu l World » Galerie Valérie Bach, Brussels, Belgium, September – November 2012 « Rancinan in New York » Opera Gallery, New York, October 2012 Pr intemps de Septembre 2012 « History is mine! » Museum of Contemporary Art Les Abattoirs, Toulouse, France, September - October 2012 Collective exhibition with Anselm Kiefer, Pierre&Gilles, Mounir Fatmi MTV Re:def ine Project Goss Michael Foundation, Dallas, USA, September 2012 Collective exhibition with Marc Quinn, Michael Craig Martin, Ryan McGinness « Wonderfu l World » Londonewcastle Project Space, Shoreditch, London, UK, June 2012 « The Tr i logy of the Moderns » Triennale di Milano, Milano, Italy, May 2012 « Rancinan in S ingapore » Opera Gallery, Singapore, March 2012 Art Los Angeles Contemporary 2012 Jerome Zodo Gallery (Milano), Los Angeles, United States, 19-22 January 2012 « The Tr i logy of the Moderns » Contemporary Art Museum of Baku, Azerbaïdjan, 2012 « Rancinan in Hong Kong » Opera Gallery, Hong Kong, November - December 2011 Ref lex Min iature Museum Gemeentemuseum Den Haag, The Hague, Netherlands, November 2011 « Hypothèses » Saint-Sauveur Chapel, Paris/Issy les Moulineaux, France, October - November 2011 MTV Re:def ine Project Goss Michael Foundation, Dallas, United States, September - October 2011 Collective exhibition with Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Shepard Fairey

« Rancinan in London » Opera Gallery, London, Great Britain, September 2011 « Rancinan » Opera Gallery, Paris, France, March 2011 « Métamorphoses » Louvre Museum bookstore, Paris, France, October 2010 « Decadence Now » Galerie Rudolfinum, Museum of Decorative Arts, Prague, September - December 2010 Collective exhibition with Damien Hirst, Andres Serrano, Cindy Sherman « Rancinan - Orig ines » Opera Gallery, Geneva, Switzerland, 2010 « 150 art istes pour l ’Angelus » Ville de Barbizon, France, May - August 2010 Collective exhibition with Combas, Erro, Klasen, Monory « Metamorphoses & Art ists portra i ts » Galerie Valerie Bach, Brussels, Belgium, April - June 2010 Hong Kong Art Fa ir 2010 Galerie Paris-Beijing (Paris), Hong Kong, May 2010 Proyecto Genero 3 Espace Cultural Ample, Foundation for Contemporary Art Development, Barcelona, Spain, March - May 2010, Collective exhibition Art Par is 2010 Galerie Valérie Bach (Brussels), Paris, France, 18-22 March 2010 « Love or sex » Galerie Brugier Rigail, Paris, France, February 2010 Collective exhibition with Robert Mappelthorpe, Speedy Graphito, JonOne « Métamorphoses » Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France, November - December 2009 « Specimens # » Galerie Nivet-Carzon, Paris, France, September - October 2009 Shanghai Contemporary Art 2009 Galerie Albert Benamou (Paris), Shanghai, China, 9-13 September 2009 Art Moscow 2009 Galerie Albert Benamou (Paris), Moscow, Russia, 23-27 September 2009 « Le Photographe » Palazzio delle esposizioni, Rome, Italy, May - July 2009 Art Par is 2009 Galerie Christophe Gaillard, Paris, France, 19-23 March 2009 « Sacré Sauvage » Château du Grand Jardin, Joinville, France, February - April 2009


« Cardinaux » Galerie Lillebonne, Nancy, France, January - March 2009 « Le Photographe » Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France, November 2008 « La tr i log ie du Sacré Sauvage » Triennale Bovisa, Milano, Italy, July - September 2008 « China , Le Déf i » Galerie 208, Paris, France, July - August 2008 « Portra its de Nathal ie » Galerie Léo Scheer, Paris, France, April - May 2008 Art Par is 2008 Galerie Rabouan Moussion, Paris, France, 3-7 April 2008 F IAC 2007 - Solo show

Galerie Rabouan Moussion, Paris, France, 2007 « Nathal ie Scene IV » MACBA, Barcelona, Spain, April - June 2007 « Trans fash ion lab » Espace Cultural Ample, Barcelona, Spain, March - June 2007 Collective exhibition with Zeng Yicheng, Erwin Olaf, Jaques Bosser, Peter Klasen « Fa its d ivers » Galerie Rabouan Moussion, Paris, France, November - December 2006 « Hibakusha » Festival of Perpignan, France, Summer 2005 « Urban Jungle » Espace Pierre Cardin, Paris, France, 2000

AWARDS 2007: Lead Academy Award - Stern Magazine 2006: Chevalier des arts et des lettres 1989: World Press - 1st price Sports stories 1989: World Press - 1st price Arts stories 1989: World Press - 1st price News stories

1987: World Press - 1st price Sports stories 1986: Grand Prix européen de la photographie de plateau 1984: World Press - 1st price Sports stories

BIBLIOGRAPHY « Wonderful World » Paradox, 2012 « Hypotheses » Paradox, 2011 « Métamorphoses, still lives and conversations» Biro Editeur, 2009 « The Photographer » ABRAMS, 2008 « Le Photographe » Editions de la Martinière, 2008

« Le Temps des rencontres » By Us, 2007 « La Trilogia del Sacro Selvaggio » Federico Motta Editore, 2007 « Exploit » Federico Motta Editore, 2005 « Art à mort » Editions Léo Scheer, 2003 « Urban Jungle » Edition de La Martinière, 2000


Chaos - The Feast of the Barbarians, 2013 235 x 350 cm Silver Print Aluminium frame under Diasec Print by Cyclope Laboratory - Gonzalo Castillo This photograph was taken at the Studio Mandarine in Genevilliers on March 14, 2013. After the photograph, “Decadence”, “The Feast of the Barbarians” concludes the “Trilogy of the Moderns.” This is the culminating point of a unique exploration of the upheavals affecting contemporary society, of the metamorphoses of humanity, of what could be called our human experience.

Métamorphose I, The Raft of Illusions, 2008 217 x 320 cm Argentic print mounted on Plexiglas in artist’s frame Print and frame by Grieger GmbH Laboratory Can the bright lights of the Promised Land really fulfil the dreams of these men who cover vast swathes of land and sea, putting their very lives at the risk? Is the quest for freedom depicted by Géricault in 1817 featuring the desperados of the Medusa fleeing from slavery now reduced to a banal desire for seductive Western brands and simple consumer products?

Wonderful World – On the way back from Disneyland, 2011 235 x 450 cm Argentic print mounted on Plexiglas in artist’s frame Print and frame by Grieger GmbH Laboratory Back from their show in Disneyland, Andy Warhol, James Dean, Elvis Presley and Marilyn ran out of gas in Death Valley. Professional doubles, they appeared on stage and screen around the world. Others will take their place.

Metamorphosis XI - Decadence, 2011 235 x 470 cm Argentic print mounted on Plexiglas in artist’s frame Print and frame by Grieger GmbH Laboratory The times are transitory, full of upheavals, marked by the desperate search for a future. Are we living the end of history as we have always known it? Like a final celebration, a decadent orgy, human history is a collection of collapsing civilisations. Caught up in the web of new versions of Modernity, they leave place for others, or leave no place at all.

Chaos - Riots, 2013 180 x 280 cm Argentic print mounted on Plexiglas in artist’s frame Print by Cyclope Laboratory - Gonzalo Castillo Inspired by the symbolic Iwo Jima battle, "Riots" depicts the still vivid urban riots and rebellions, like a search for identity.


Opera Gallery London Founded in 1994 by Gilles Dyan, member of the European Chamber of Expert-Advisors in Fine Art (C.E.C.O.A.), Opera Gallery Group, now internationally established with 11 galleries in the world, is one of the rare international art gallery networks with locations on several continents: North America, Europe, Asia and Middle East. Since its creation, Opera Gallery Group has always strived to offer its international collectors unique access to a diversity of multicultural artists, from the works of Modern Masters such as Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Bernard Buffet, Henri Matisse, Lucio Fontana or Andy Warhol, just to name a few, to the most sought-after contemporary artists (Marc Quinn, Yayoi Kusama, Yue Minjun, David Mach, Gérard Rancinan, Lita Cabellut, Joe Black, among others). http://www.operagallery.com

press release - gerard rancinan2014 - opera gallery release - gerard rancinan2014.pdfpalazzio delle...

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