[FRAC CHAMPAGNE-ARDENNE]
Created in 1984, the FRAC Champagne-Ardenne is active in the support and creation of contemporary art. It is mandated to create and promote a collection of contemporary works of art, to develop and mount exhibitions of contemporary artists, to publish, and to organize educational activities and events in order to sensitize the public about contemporary art. Having 23 frac in France across the regions, it is a model between a museum and an art center. They hold exhibitions with their own art collections and open activities regarding art so that public can freely participate.
Each year at the Ancien Collège des Jésuites in Reims, the FRAC Champagne-Ardenne presents solo or collective exhibitions, as well as exhibits of totally new works by contemporary artists who are either invited or requested to work there. Through the budget from the Ministry of Culture, every exhibition and activity provided by the Frac is open to everyone for free. The Frac Champagne-Ardenne contributes to numerous exhibitions, loaning the collections throughout France and abroad, thereby significantly advancing the cultural promotion of the region. The Frac Champagne-Ardenne also publishes a magazine <CARF> every year about all the programming of one year. It is released in English and French version to “continue our mission of broadcasting arts, not only in the region, but abroad” explains director of Frac Champagne Ardenne.
Meet the current director of the Frac Champagne-Ardenne (Reims, France), Marie Griffay.
Marie Griffay director of the FRAC champagne ardenne since 2017 considers each exhibition has one main principle: to share not only the experience of art, but also emotions, thoughts. Every Saturday morning, there are workshops for children on contemporary arts. There was also special activity ‘Beer social club’ in 25th September at Sciences Po to raise more participation and interest of the public. Frac Champagne-Ardenne also holds various conferences and meetings regarding arts and culture in Sciences Po Reims. To raise public awareness of female artists in collections, exhibitions, art books and the media, she regularly organizes exhibitions of female artists and has invited guests such as an art critic specialized in feminist history of art.
Q&A
1. What is the goal of frac?
Frac was created in the early 80s, so it is more than 30 years. The goal at that time was to spread the art in France regions. And we do more than 20 exhibitions in the region. Most of the activities are done outside the Frac. We do exhibitions in schools, in hospitals, we do some workshops in prison and all the activities are always for free. We are the association and as the association, we want to provide artworks to everyone with an easy access and free access.
2. Is there uniqueness of FRAC Champagne-Ardenne differed from other Frac in other regions?
The question of every Frac is how to be able to mediate arts to senseless people to arts in the region so all of the Frac put at one point of tool to go in the region. Here, in Frac Champagne-Ardenne, we asked the designer called Matali Crasset to make furniture for us that will help us to make the exhibition where there is no wall. So she invented big furniture that looks like a star and you can put it in the middle of the room and hang the artworks on this furniture. So even if there is no wall, you can put this everywhere. This is our particularity because we ordered that one from the designer.
3. How do you select the topic/theme for the exhibition?
My program is under the theme of ‘game’. I tried to program the exhibitions related to the theme. The theme of game is a good entry to make the program where people would participate like in a game, participating it together and freely. A game acts in our everyday life because you have rules, and you act freely on those rules.
4. What does arts mean to you?
Art is space of freedom. Sometimes, it allows me to free myself from my everyday life, to free my thinking, to free my creativity. I think it is nice to share with people and hope that some of them would get the same feeling of maybe freedom and want to debate, want to meet each other, want to talk about arts. Hope people would share the same pleasures.
5. What is the ultimate goal of Frac?
I hope it continues to grow in the sense of having more audience and having more partners. It is interesting to see how things are growing because even partners, it is based on human relationships. So this is like living organism. If you want people to come, to invite partners, it is based on human interactions. So what I wish for Frac is to continue to have these stimulating human interactions.
6. For those students who want to work in art field in the future, what would you suggest them to build up for their career?
What I would suggest first is to see the maximum of arts you can like exhibitions, performances, concert, theater. Try to go out as often as you can and always prepare studying with professional training.
Present Exhibition
Evelyn Taocheng Wang - Diffuser l'élégance / Spreading Elegance
Spreading Elegance, the first monographic exhibition of Chinese-Dutch artist Evelyn Taocheng Wang in France, is held at the FRAC Champagne-Ardenne from 12nd October 2019 to 23rd February 2020 for free.
Evelyn Taocheng Wang questions the notion of identity as a moving concept, mostly linked to space and time. Spreading Elegance questions body representation and social images. This exhibition also features three works by Franco-Japanese painter Léonard Foujita (1886-1968), an icon of modernity and closely linked to the city of Reims. The exhibition also allows visitors to discover Evelyn Taocheng Wang’s video work through three recent films that showcase the body, clothing and architecture.
Director’s Words
1. What made you decide to organize an exhibition on her?
Though she already had a lot of exhibitions in Germany and Netherlands, she never had an exhibition in France. But most of her works deal with French Elegance. She is the artist who has to be shown in front of the French audience to confront all the fantasy to France. She had a fantasy about elegance of Europe and women. Here in this exhibition, she shows her artworks of clothes that she gave to her friends in exchange of the letter. In the letters, they talk about the concept of elegance. In this way, audience can think of elegance in multiple points of view. When you read the letters, you can see how elegance can be found in everywhere, in education, family, society, gender, and how we get accepted. With these letters, Evelyn also made drawings based on the letters in traditional Chinese style, referring to Chinese art history but totally mixed with European culture. We are also exhibiting her short films as well. It is the work dealing with the notion of identity of fitting in, feeling accepted. I hope many people to see her works.
2. In what aspect do you want or expect audience to enjoy the exhibition?
When I first received her works, it was very intimate and touching experience for me. I hope audience to take some time for each artwork from letters to the drawings. Through 20 testimonies of her, I am sure audience can relate one to another by at least one detail. And audience would be able to follow the process through seeing how the artist made her artworks from the letters in the exhibition.
Upcoming Events
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