In the cultural hub SIRA in Paris, the nomadic curatorial project Shivers Only uses video art and analog photography to carve out human fragility and depict How Unreal We Are
A somewhat low-quality analog photograph of a cave entrance. Michael Gira and a carved room: the birth of a group show
«Right from the start, this exhibition area instantly brought to mind the Gira’s Drain Land album cover, which featured a somewhat low-quality analog photograph of a cave entrance», explains Marot before adding, «I never start with a fixed notion in mind. I don’t follow a set plan. It was only when I revisited the album and dove back into the lyrics that the title naturally emerged, and everything fell into place around it».
Michael Gira 1994 Unreal song – The Gate of Hell recounts human fragility
On the second floor of SIRA art residency in Paris’s surroundings is a nomadic curatorial project Shivers Only’s ninth group show. The exhibition which is entitled How Unreal We Are gathers five eclectic international artists, under a rounded roof in a long, windowless space. Inspired by the cave shape of the exhibition space, artist and curator Hubert Marot chose to curate every piece starting from that unconventional room. And the show title was then taken from American singer Michael Gira 1994 Unreal song.
In this lightless space, the notion of disorientation immediately materialized and emerged the necessity of revealing the real side of human fragility. This is why, upon entering, visitors are greeted by the art installation Hell Door by Italian artist Gabriele Garavaglia – a colossal, glossy black elevator door that goes hectically from minus twenty to plus forty-four. The artwork evoked in Marot’s mind the bronze sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin, known as La Porte de l’Enfer [The Gate of Hell], which carries a profound sense of darkness and intensity. «I aimed for something with a strong, commanding presence that would simultaneously obscure the view of the rest of the space. As a result, you’re greeted with this commanding front-facing installation», said the young curator who founded Shivers Only.
Hubert Marot’s Shivers Only: a curatorial project on human fragility through analog photography
Shivers Only is a nomadic artistic project launched by Marot in 2017 with an exhibition in a space located at -1 of a parking lot. He decided to organize a group show and invite artist friends, all of whom had a sensitive and hybrid approach to analog photography. The goal was to showcase a new kind of photography, one that departed from the traditional framed print. The title Shivers Only perfectly encapsulated this sentiment, and Marot chose to retain it for the project. Since then, Hubert Marot has been steering the project single-handedly, envisioning over eight diverse exhibitions in a range of unconventional spaces. He also dedicated efforts to crafting booths for three art fairs, published an edition titled ‘Watch Me Fall’ featuring text by writer Matthieu Peck, and produced a photo-book based on a remote show he organized during the COVID-19 lockdown.
«Every time, it’s a fresh venue. I don’t want it to become stagnant or permanent because that would create a different kind of economy. It’s more of a just-in-time approach for exhibitions, prints, etc…and I also appreciate the fact that each location lends a theme to the experience», he said. Since the beginning Marot has showcased around fifty artists that he admires, including friends, which all become members of a community he has cultivated over time. He also features foreign artists, often with whom he shares an artistic affinity and the interest on human fragility. As a result, his program is diverse, featuring a range of mediums such as painting, analog photography, and sculpture. Shivers Only goal is thus to create a blend that accommodates both emerging talents and established artists.
La SIRA: an art residency in Paris and a cultural hub for analog photography
Being an artist himself, Marot’s work delves deep into the core principles of analog photography. Through his hybrid approach to the medium, he skillfully blends it with painting, experiments with framing, and explores abstraction. For over seven years, Marot has maintained a studio space at SIRA, an art residency and cultural hub located in Asnières-sur-Seine. He has served as the curatorial director of the venue for the past two years, overseeing events, artist selections, and contributing ideas for exhibitions and artistic acquisitions. For the past thirteen years, SIRA has been welcoming over thirty permanent residents daily.
Founded by Anatole Maggiar, the space has hosted more than three hundred artists since its inception. Each year, in addition to the site’s collection exhibition during the summer, La organizes a major show, offering a carte blanche to a selected curator, in October, coinciding with the Paris art fairs. Last year, they entrusted this role to Benoît Lamy de La Chapelle, the director of the contemporary art center La Synagogue de Delme, who occupied the biggest room of the venue. This year, with the first year of Paris + by Art Basel Anatole Maggiar, chose Hubert Marot and his Shivers Only project for the task.
In addition to daily interactions with artists, SIRA has expanded its reach by engaging in consulting services for both public and private cultural institutions. The past year marked the successful completion of two projects: the ‘Serge Gainsbourg, le mot Exact’ exhibition at the Centre Pompidou and the highly anticipated launch of Maison Gainsbourg.
How Unreal We Are: a five international artist group show
«When the cool light flows, Through ten million minds, Our experience will blend usIn with your sight, Our experience will blend usIn with the stars, No, we’ll never know, How unreal we are». Those lyrics by singer Micheal Gira are the only text that accompanies the exhibition as Marot explains not especially wanting to provide an explanatory text, preferring to leave room for interpretation and an air of mystery. A diffuse common thread still links the different artwork together.
Human Fragility: feelings of distress and anxiety – Gabriele Garavaglia’s Hell Door
In Gabriele Garavaglia’s Hell Door the notion of overworking is intertwined with feelings of distress and anxiety. In French artist Benjamin Lallier Through Puberty To Success, a painting on aluminum, a character that has a stunned or bewildered face is being depicted.
The artist works mainly around the idea of alienation and human fragility. Marot explains: «It’s a bit unclear whether the character comes across as clownish or just plain crazy. I felt this added a touch of novelty, while simultaneously resonating with the whole wacky elevator concept that’s a bit off the rails. Plus, it effectively divides the space and creates a shadowy backdrop for the video of Anaïs-Tohé Commaret».
Anaïs-Tohé Commaret Mustard – French escorts making fun
Entitled Mustard, this seven-minute-long video captures two young French escorts making fun of their clients on the phones. Anaïs-Tohé Commaret is an artist who adopts an immersive approach when filming, connecting with the individuals she captures. She thus dedicated a considerable amount of time getting to know these girls before filming them.
In the video the girls start in the hallway before taking an elevator and arrive in a building’s lobby. «There was also this notion of a sort of descent, like a journey into the depths, experienced by these young girls who are involved in prostitution. In this exhibition, there are some recurring themes coming back: the notions of ascent, suspension, and the interplay between going up and down that subtly connects each piece», explains the young curator.
Alexandra Noel, The Kooples Art Prize. Human fragility has a shape
In the center of the room is Peranakan and American artist Kim Farkas, winner of The Kooples Art Prize, 22-08 art pieces. Made of composites, reiki stones and LED bulbs, those half-fish, half-chrysalid suspended sculptures are illuminating the room. Not immediately noticeable are the small formats oil paintings of American painter Alexandra Noel are as little splashes of color providing a sense of balance with the other pieces.
«Those very condensed formats have a strength, they’re reminiscent of historical and religious paintings, relics kind of format», said Marot before adding, «I’ve also chosen those two abstract paintings because they take up the idea of curves, a subtle reference to space, yet there’s a certain ethereal quality to them. You’re left wondering whether you’re floating in the sky or caught in a swirling tornado». Spirituality and human fragility at the center of the artist’s research
La SIRA: an art residency and cultural hub in Paris showing analog photography and video art
La SIRA is an art residency, a cultural hub, a photo studio and a gallery founded in 2010 in Asnières-Sur-Seine on the outskirts of Paris. For more than a decade, SIRA has federated a wide range of energies and fostered the development of a number of collaborations, encounters and experiments within the cultural third-party spaces it creates and runs. Nurtured by daily exchanges with artists, SIRA develops consulting activities for public and private cultural institutions. The gallery often exhibits artworks of analog photography
