Claude Lévêque

See also: Lévêque

Claude Lévêque , Artist Plastics technician French, born in 1953 with Nevers (Nievre). Lives and works with Montreuil (Seine-Saint-Denis).

It is at the school of the fine arts that he discovers the Modern art, but it is with Paris, at the National center of Art of Creteil, where an exposure is held then of Christian Boltanski, that he discovers the Contemporary art.

At the end of its studies, in 1977, it finds the medium of art “folklo” and “deceives itself much” for other fields of activities which it thinks less codified: the fashion, the Publicity, the Music…

It often takes the train for Paris, “where a scene of avant-garde (...) lookée by Serge Krügger is solidified, indicated by the graphic designers of Bazooka, painted by Kiki Picasso, wired for sound by Edith Nylon, the Stinky Toys, Taxi Girl, which has its own stars (Jacno, Marie-France, Elli Medeiros, Alain Pacadis…) and its general headquarter: the De luxe hotel of Fabrice Aemer (...), and the uninterrupted sequence in the concerts and the festivals, thus building an esthetics of rupture”. It is there, and surely not in the field of art, that Lévêque draws its influences, and develops, finally, the bases of its work.

It is in 1982 that it takes part for the first time in an exposure, collective, at the House of Arts of Creteil, where it presents an installation entitled Grand Hotel (a work that it concerve still today).

One can note important works like Ende with the Gallery Yvon Lambert of Paris or Brave New World with the Footbridge of Brest, Let' S Dance with the Fondation Miró of Barcelona, or Reconstruire the window in Rice gallery of Tokyo. It takes part in the biennial ones like that of Lyon or Havana in 2003.

Claude Lévèque privileges in situ work, although he often worked on the ground of the objects, his choices lean towards the creation of spaces and atmospheres. The privileged tool of the artist remains the daily environment. Through installations the artist seeks to see, to look at reality differently… For the house of the lies that it exposes to the Musée of contemporary art of Marseilles (2006), it does not hesitate to be trotted at retailers of furniture as IKEA to discover objects which it uses such as it is in the atmospheres that it creates.

Within the framework of the exposure “ Walt Disney ” to the Large palace of Paris, (in 2006), one of its works was refused because judged " irresponsable" by Dominique Païni, the police chief of the exposure. This work associates a Mickey Mouse out of neon tubes with the sentence " Arbeit macht frei ", such as it was registered by the Nazis at the entry of the Concentration camp of Auschwitz. (cf “discussion”)

Claude Lévêque is fascinated by the world of childhood, the young boys, it carried out several works by using the image of Mehdi El Glaoui of the serial Belle and Sebastien.

Claude Lévêque is represented today in France by the gallery Yvon Lambert.

Quotation

“I think that the contemporary art can cause a space different of redécouverte things, independent of the obligations of consumption dictated by degrading media, of the corrupted politicians and the merchants of plays, houses or motors.”

Personal exposures

2006

  • One of nine contemporary works which mark out the Ligne 3 of the Parisian tram * the House of the lies , MAC, Marseilles.
  • the big sleep , MAC/Val of Vitry-sur-Seine. About thirty iron bedsteads white suspended by the feet with the ceiling of a part of 1.400 m ², lit by a black light and overhanging large basins of figure filled with white balls. On the bars of the beds of the balls are also laid out randomly, like a counting frame. MacVal
2005 2004
  • Illuminations , Sleepless night, Bahnhof Montparnasse Bvd Lefèvre, Paris.
  • Northern lights , Station TGV, Lille.
  • Kurt Kobain, April 8th, 1994 , New Gallery, Grenoble.
2003
  • Albatross , MAMCO, Geneva.
  • VALSTAR Barbie , 7th Biennial of Lyon.
  • Boomerang , Genêteil Vault, Castle-Gontier.
  • I dreamed of another world , Collection Yvon Lambert, Avignon.
  • Contemporary Art Center, Art Tower Mito, Japan.
  • Jacob Burckhardt Haus, Basle.
  • Interface , Triennial Echigo Tsumari, Tokamachi, Japan.
2002
  • of evian , Arndt & Partner, Berlin.
  • My combat , the Bathroom, Lyon.
  • To rebuild the window , Rice Gallery, Tokyo.
  • Welcome to Pacific Dream , the Gallery, Noisy-the-Dryness.
  • City Strass , Project Room, Museum of Modern art and Contemporary, Strasbourg.
  • Double Horse-gear , Contemporary Art Center, Art Tower Mito, Japan.
  • Manifesto , Commission, College of Architecture, Grenoble.
2001
  • ende , Gallery Yvon Lambert, Paris.
  • Scarface , At Valentine, Paris.
  • Let' S dance , Mirò Foundation, Barcelona.
  • Brave New World , Center of art Footbridge, Brest.
2000
  • Caos Verde , Coffee 9, Saint-Etienne.
  • the Right of most extremely the , Arranges Stephan Ackermann, Luxembourg.
  • Scarface , Cinema Varieties, FRAC PACA, Marseilles.
  • Herr world , the Hollow of Enfert, Thiers.
  • Haüsler Kunst Projekte, Munich.
  • luminous Path , Single Place, Nantes.
1999
  • Kollaps , the Consortium, Dijon.
  • Stigmata , PS1, New York.
  • Oscillations , State Street Gallery Bridge, Chicago.
  • Virus Day , Arco 99, Madrid.
  • World Cup , Emmetrop, Transpallet, Bourges.
1998
  • Game' S Over , Gallery of the Day Agnes B., Paris.
  • FRAC, Nantes.
  • The World is the Range , the Store, Villeneuve, Grenoble.
  • More light , Arson Villa, Nice.
1997
  • Kunsthalle Freiburg, Fri Art, Swiss.
  • Turbid , Kasseler Kunstverein, Cassel.
  • Claude Lévêque , Gallery Toxic New Art, Luxembourg.
1996
  • the Champions , Gallery of Paris, Paris.
  • Gallery of the Day Agnes B., Paris.
  • I Wanna Be your Dog , Workshop Holy-Anne, Brussels.
  • At Valentine, Paris.
  • My Way , ARC/musée of modern art of the town of Paris, Paris.
1995
  • images of the pleasure , the Swimming pool, Laval.
  • Room 321 , modern Comfort, Poitiers.
  • Center of contemporary engraving, Geneva.
1994
  • Gallery Hiltrud Jordan, Cologne.
  • occupied Apartment , Bourges.
  • Gallery of Paris, Paris.
1993
  • occupied Apartment , Bourges.
1992
  • Posters in urban space, orders Observatory, Marseilles.
  • Cross-pieces , French Arts center, Palermo.
  • Operation HLM , OPAC, Nevers.
1991
  • Gallery of Paris, Paris.
1990
  • Square 2, Ibos and Parvis 3, Paris.
  • Saint-Andrew Abbey, Center of contemporary art, Meymac.
1988
  • Gallery of Paris, Paris.
1987
  • Museum of contemporary art, Hertogenbosch.
  • Bossuet Museum, Meaux.
1986
  • Gallery Philippe Casini, Paris.
  • Center of contemporary art, APAC, Nevers.
1984
  • Gallery Eric Fabre, Paris.

Random links:William Auguste Coolidge | Leeuwarden | Mpinga Kasenda | Reggae with blows of circus | Harry Dexter White | Jérôme_Eugène_Coggia