Le Sentiment de la Nature Contemporary Art in the Mirror of Poussin
Nicolas Poussin
Paysage de Grottaferrata : Paysage au Dieu Fleuve / Vénus et Adonis, vers 1626
Huile sur toile
75 × 199 cm
Musée Fabre, Montpellier Méditérranée Métropole, Inv. n° 825.1.171 – Photo Frédéric Jaulmes
Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665) was the first painter to focus not simply on landscape, but on Nature, which he did with lyricism and increasing sensitivity over the course of his career. Given that Poussin founded a school, something of this ‘feeling for Nature’ was passed on to the generations that followed, for example, in the works of Gaspard Dughet and Claude-Joseph Vernet. But what of today? Although ecological worries are a major concern for our societies, are there any artists who still depict nature elegiacally? It is our aim to show that yes, indeed there are, by bringing together, on each of Villa Paloma’s floors, classical paintings with all manner of contemporary works: sculptures, installations, photographs, videos, films, paintings and drawings. And while these pairings for the most part represent a Franco‑Italian exchange, though not exclusively, they do so as a tribute to Poussin, who, though French, spent most of his career in Rome.
The exhibition is in six sections – Storms and Nights; Forests and Gardens; Seascapes and Waterfalls; Deserts and Volcanoes; Mountains; Flowers and Butterflies – each offering a different perspective on what during Antiquity was called miracula naturae … the marvels of nature.
With works by Roger Ackling, Robert Barry, Anne-Lise Broyer, Giorgio Andreotta Calò, Pier Paolo Calzolari, Christo et Jeanne-Claude, Thomas Demand, Gustave Doré, Gaspard Dughet, Latifa Echakhch, Tim Eitel, Ed van der Elsken, Ilse et Pierre Garnier, Nan Goldin, Andreas Gursky, Suzanne Husky, Mimmo Jodice, Pierre Joseph, Ange Leccia, Pierre Lesieur, Charles de Meaux, Fausto Melotti, Mario Merz, Sarah Moon, Giulio Paolini, Claudio Parmiggiani, Bruno Pélassy, Giuseppe Penone, Nicolas Poussin, Anting Qiu, Walter Robinson, Torbjørn Rødland, Anne Laure Sacriste, Christophe Sarlin, Pierre Thoretton, Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes, Joseph Vernet, Marine Wallon…
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalog published by Humboldt.
Curated by Guillaume de Sardes
Exhibition design: Christophe Martin
