Paris+ is set to bring the heartbeat of contemporary art to the capital. Discover our selection of 20 exhibitions to visit during the prestigious Grand Palais Ephemère fair. Galleries from around the world are presenting their works and artists in Paris for Paris+ by Art Basel, which will take place from October 20 to 22. The presence of numerous collectors in the capital explains the abundance of parallel events alongside the now essential modern and contemporary art fair. From the Gilles Aillaud exhibition at the 67th Salon de Montrouge to the inauguration of Hauser & Wirth’s new gallery and the new season of the Bourse du Commerce, the planets are aligning for contemporary art and offering delightful experiences. Here is an overview of the 20 exhibitions not to be missed!
1. In bed with Katharina Grosse
“The Bedroom” is an artwork that Katharina Grosse created in 2004 in her apartment in Düsseldorf, where she literally painted her own bed and belongings with spray paint. This major work in the artist’s career, accustomed to public spaces, returns twenty years later to Paris in a unique installation. Read more “Katharina Grosse. The Bedroom” Galerie Max Hetzler, 75 004 Paris until October 21, 2023
2. Do you believe in ghosts?
For the 24th edition of the Fondation Ricard Prize, the theme of “Do you Believe in Ghosts?” served as a common thread for the six selected artists, including the highly publicized Pol Taburet. The exhibition develops the notion of ghosts as a metaphor and concept by borrowing from the thinking of Jacques Derrida. The quote “Do you Believe in Ghosts” comes from the film “Ghost Dance” in which Jacques Derrida, playing himself, answers this question at length. “24th Pernod Ricard Foundation Prize” Fondation Pernod Ricard 75008 Paris until October 28, 2023
3. The contemporary scene takes center stage
The Salon de Montrouge is now in its 67th edition, which shows how this annual exhibition launched in 1965 has become an important event for contemporary art. From Djamel Tatah to Clément Cogitore, from Marine Wallon to Juliette Green, many creators have exhibited and been revealed there. For the second year, around forty artists are presented on the ground floor of the Beffroi by Work Method (Guillaume Désanges and Coline Davenne). Read more 67th Salon de Montrouge Le Beffroi, 92120 Montrouge until October 29, 2023
4. Engaged trompe-l’oeil
Lise Stoufflet, a graduate of the Beaux-Arts in Paris, appropriates La Samaritaine for the event “Paris Trompe-l’oeil”. On the raw walls of the Rivoli building, Stoufflet unveils a large marouflaged fresco adorned with dozens of oversized eyes held up like signs. The young French artist invokes both the symbolist heritage and contemporary concerns related to surveillance society. “Lise Stoufflet” Factory de La Samaritaine 75 001 Paris until October 30, 2023
5. New talents and raw concrete
For its tenth edition, the Emerige Revelations Prize 2023 presents its twelve winners at 190, Rue Lecourbe in the 15th arrondissement from October 5 to November 5, at the Hôtel des Arts in Toulon in December-January, and then at the French Institute in Madrid in April-May 2024. In the vast spaces of raw concrete, complemented by two separate rooms reserved for works with erotic connotations, the works intertwine or collide. Read more “Emerige Revelations Prize 2023” 190, Rue Lecourbe, 75015 Paris until November 5, 2023
6. Playing with architecture at Saint-Eustache
More recent, the Rubis Mécénat Prize has been supporting a student from the Beaux-Arts de Paris for three years. This time, the lucky winner presented at the Saint-Eustache Church is Marc Lohner, for his installation Achéiropoïètes (a Greek term meaning “not made by human hands”), which is inspired by the architecture of the church. The winner systematically photographed all the faces of the octagonal limestone blocks that serve as the bases for the church’s 82 interior pillars, as well as other less visible parts. He then printed the most characteristic images on five strips of translucent linen fabric, which he hung between certain pillars and over nearly twelve meters in height. “Marc Lohner. Acheiropoïètes” Église Saint-Eustache, 75 001 Paris until December 17, 2023
7. Marcel Duchamp Prize, 2023 vintage
Four artists remain in the running to win the 23rd edition of the Marcel Duchamp Prize, a prize created in 2000 by Gilles Fuchs, founder of the Adiaf (Association for the International Distribution of French Art). The winner, chosen on October 16 from the four artists Bertille Bak, Bouchra Khalili, Tarik Kiswanson, and Massinissa Selmani, will receive €90,000, including €35,000 for a residency at Villa Albertine in the United States. This prestigious prize, which reveals French contemporary art, always benefits from an exhibition of each artist’s work held annually at the Centre Pompidou. “Marcel Duchamp Prize 2023” Center Pompidou, 75 004 Paris until January 8, 2024
8. The maze of Kehinde Wiley
Becoming famous thanks to his official portrait of Barack Obama, which he painted in 2018, Kehinde Wiley is known for his hyperrealistic paintings that celebrate marginalized communities. At the Musée du quai Bran
