January 03rd – February 01st 2009 KAISERIN exhibition No.2: Hors Les Murs (H.L.M.). Residents: Arnaud-Pierre Fourtané and Didier Fitan
Oct 18th – Feb 01st 2009 Al Baltrop – Pier Photographs 1975-1986
Public Reception featuring German Sekt or Italian Prosecco: Saturday, January 03, 2009, 7-10pm / Ausstellungseröffnung: Samstag, 03. Januar 2009, 19-22 Uhr
Hors Les Murs (H.L.M.)
Exile is very happy to present its third residency project entitled Hors Les Murs (H.L.M.) (Outside the walls), organized and curated by Arnaud-Pierre Fourtané and Didier Fitan, editors of KAISERIN Magazine. KAISERIN is an independent bi-annual magazine founded in 2006 that presents the work of renowned and emerging artists, authors, photographers, graphic designers, typographers, illustrators and poets. Hors Les Murs (H.L.M.) is part of a series of exhibitions by the editors. Previous exhibitions were held at OFR, Paris and Envoy Gallery, New York.
Each KAISERIN issue centers around one specific theme or title. Hors Les Murs (H.L.M.) celebrates the launch of the fifth issue of KAISERIN, L’Outside. The magazine and the exhibition complement one another with the aim of replacing the walls of a space with the pages of a magazine and vice versa.
Fourtané and Fitan bring together a wide selection of artistic practices that set architectural environments and individual identities in direct contrast. The idea of being outside of your comfort zone, outside of your defined space forms the conceptual basis for their project. The exhibition Hors Les Murs (H.L.M.) and the magazine L’Outside venture into all walks of creative life without limitation and boundaries.
With a special feature L’Outside will pay homage to the work of Al Baltrop and, for the very first time, include two color photographs taken on the Piers. A performance by Santiago Reyes will be a special part of the opening. A limited edition by artist AleksandarTodorovic is available during the exhibition.
Participating artists in Magazine and exhibition are: Aleksandar Todorovic, Al Baltrop, Ariel Kenig, Arnaud-Pierre Fourtané, Bertrand Le Pluard, Brandon Herman, Cyril Sancereau, Didier Fitan, Éric Stephany, Gio Black Peter, Grant Willing, Guillaume Greff, James J. Williams III, Jared Buckhiester, Joseph Earlwyn Covington, Liesbeth de Fossé, Nicklas Hultman, Oliver Laric, Santiago Reyes, Slava Mogutin, Vier5 http://www.kaiserin-magazine.com
Al Baltrop – Pier Photographs 1975-1986
For the final month of the exhibition Exile presents a selection of never before seen photographs by Alvin Baltrop and shows Baltrop’s photograph of Day’s End alongside Gordon Matta-Clark’s film Day’s End from 1975. Excerpts from the documentary project in progress In the dark we can all be free: The life and photography of Alvin Baltrop by Baltrop's friend and former assistant Randal Wilcox will complement the exhibition.
Al Baltrop was born in the Bronx in 1948 and passed away in 2004. From 1975 to 1986 he photographed the crumbling piers and their inhabitants on the west side of Manhattan. He photographed obsessively and created an incredible archive of thousands of photographs that show a captivating mélange of intimacy, decay, violence, creativity and anarchy.
Without ever being nostalgic Baltrop’s photographs portray the end of a legendary era: the architectural destruction of the piers and, even more, the emotional and physical destruction through the impact of the AIDS crisis. His photographs though are so much more than historical documents. His passion and personality is visible in the prints. Each of his photographs offers a well-constructed, intimate, and moving glimpse into this fascinating time and place.
During his lifetime, there was little artistic appreciation of his photography and only in recent years has his work slowly emerged to greater awareness. In February 2008 Artforum Magazine devoted its cover and a comprehensive visual essay to his work accompanied by a text by respected art-critic Douglas Crimp. His work was recently included in the exhibition Darkside at the Fotomuseum Winterthur, alongside artists such as Bill Jacobson, Nan Goldin, Man Ray amongst others.
Exile is extremely honored to present the very first solo-show of Al Baltrop’s work in Europe. Al Baltrop – Pier Photographs 1975-1986 presents a monthly changing display of rare vintage and modern prints. Modern editions of each photograph, printed by the estate of Baltrop, are available for sale.
