The title of this event refers to a quote from Archimède: “Give me a place to stand and with a lever, I will move the whole world” [Greek “Δος μοι πα στω και ταν γαν κινήσω”].
The exhibition presents a dialogue between the residencies of two artists: Léonie Young, who was hosted on a residency by Studio Gallery BWA Wrocław in Wrocław [PL] in 2016, andAnna Raczyńska, who was hosted on a residency by la malterie in Lille [FR] in 2017. Both experiences derived from their usual working space and habitat in order to explore other context specifics with a fresh perspective.
By making use of the photographic medium in most of her work, Léonie Young gathers what reveals itself as obvious in her eyes. Cutting it, she rebuilds a subjective cartography made of crossed spaces and outdated utopias.
Anna Raczyńska stages microfictions connected to the residency itself (second-hand objects, studio’s keys, cultural symbols), following a process blending incompatible scales as in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” – a novel by Lewis Carroll.
“Give me a place to stand” places itself between a freedom that flies over allowing to zoom in and out, and the urge to make new pieces to conclude the residency on a high note. It becomes then a confrontation between the artist and the unknown land where she stands, which oddness and details unveil with insight, dreams alike.
Exhibition: 24.11.2017-7.01.2018 | The Espace Le Carré
Curator of the exhibition: Jean-Christophe Arcos
Event is co-produced by the City of Lille
About the exchange between Wrocław and Lille:
Since 2013 the la malterie association together with BWA Wrocław Galleries of Contemporary Art have run a residency exchange between Wrocław and Lille, offering creative stays abroad for visual artists from both of the sister cities. In 2016 it resulted in the residency of Léonie Young and “Pack your bags” – the exhibition of her works, curated by Łukasz Rusznica, held in “Miejsce przy Miejscu” gallery in Wrocław. In addition to Young’s residency, there was a summary exhibition held in Studio Gallery BWA Wrocław. “Over time…”, curated by Joanna Stembalska,Dominika Drozdowska and Elise Jouvancy, included artworks of four residents, who participated in the long-term exchange between BWA Wrocław and la malterie: Kama Sokolnicka and Krystian “Truth” Czaplicki from Wrocław together with Philemon Vanorlé and Léonie Young from Lille. “Over time…” was supported by Foreign Relations Offices of the City of Lille and the City of Wrocław, Cultural Division of the City of Wrocław and Culture Zone Wrocław within the framework of AIR Wro. Both of the exhibitions were an important part of “Lille meets Wrocław” programme, which was a series of event presenting the effects of the cooperation between Lille and Wrocław.
