Following 6 grants awarded in the field of visual arts to Vera Kox, Eric Schumacher, Yann Yannicchiarico, Anne-Mareike Hess and Elisabeth Schilling in the field of performing arts and Albena Petrovic in the field of music, the selection committees of Kultur | lx – Arts Council Luxembourg have awarded 5 grants in 2023 in the field of visual arts to:

• Baltzer Bisagno : Dove ? Perché ? Per chi ?
The current artistic development of Baltzer Bisagno marks the end of a cycle, and while it is still in progress, other paths are emerging or becoming clearer. It is therefore fundamental, and even constitutive, to inscribe this six-year period of significant research and production as an act of sedimentation of the questions raised up to that point from a complex critical perspective. It turns out that a book represents a pivotal moment in the creative process in terms of process and purpose. It is a work of art.
The collaboration with authors and curators will sketch out new paths, such as those called for by the work Arabesque.

• Ivana Cekovic
With the publication of a 120-page trilingual catalogue (English, French and Serbian), Ivana Cekovic aims to offer a panorama of the different periods of her work, including cycles of pictorial research, video work and interdisciplinary urban projects which, as well as marking her artistic career, have also left their mark on the history of Luxembourg.
With contributions from Dr Harry Lehmann, philosopher and researcher at the University of Luxembourg, Anastasia Chaguidouline, Artistic Director of Cercle Cité, Dr Nikola Suica, Professor at the Faculty of Fine Arts*, University of the Arts, Belgrade, former Chairman of the Board of the Belgrade Museum of Contemporary Art, Ante Glibota (1945-2020) art and architecture historian, Vice-President of the European Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters.

• Catherine Lorent : RELEGATION SOUNDS
RELEGATION SOUNDS, Special sound edition and online documentation on the occasion of 10 years of RELEGATION by Catherine Lorent at the Luxembourg Pavilion, 55th Venice Biennale 2013.
First shown at the 55th Venice Biennale 2013 as a solo exhibition in the Luxembourg pavilion, RELEGATION celebrates its tenth anniversary in 2023 and Catherine Lorent aims to create a reenactment in the form of a sound publication and online documentation – in collaboration with performer Natasa Grujovic (accordion), Martin Eder (guitar) and Christian Neyes (sound engineer).

• Arny Schmit : Beyond Nature
On the occasion of his exhibition Beyond Nature at Galerie Reuter Bausch, Arny Schmit has published a book carrying the same title.

• Trixi Weis
Although the artist’s work has appeared in some forty catalogues and magazines since the start of her career in 1994, no monographic publication has ever been produced. Through this publication, she hopes to establish the thread of her work in a book.

 

Recent publication

Cover My Opera World by Albena Petrovic

My Opera World by Albena Petrovic, L’octanphare, 25€
Albena Petrovic, recipient of the portfolio grant in 2022, published her book in November 2023, opening the door to her artistic universe through the eyes and expertise of journalists, musicologists and researchers. This book can be explored with the eyes, ears and hands, for anyone wishing to discover, understand and explore the creative immensity of Albena Petrovic’s resolutely feminine and contemporary vocal work.

Following the call for applications for the research and creation residency at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin, artist Laurianne Bixhain was selected as the laureate.

The jury, made up of Yann Annicchiarico (artist and laureate 2023), Sandra Schwender (Clervaux – Cité de l’image) and Anastasia Chaguidouline (Cercle Cité), analysed the applications received and provided their recommendations to the Künstlerhaus Bethanien. At the end of the selection process, Laurianne Bixhain’s application was ultimately approved by the management of Künstlerhaus Bethanien.

Statement of the jury
The jury chose the project by the artist Laurianne Bixhain, whose planned cooperation with a Berlin singer and convincing description of the project for a series of photos inspired by Monique Wittig aroused the curiosity of the jury. The jury was particulary impressed by the artist’s profound view of her environment and the particularities she discovers there. They see a great potential for further artistic development in Laurianne Bixhain’s projects.

The Künstlerhaus Bethanien was also keen to highlight the high quality of the entries submitted by the Luxembourg jury

Biography
Laurianne BIXHAIN was born in 1987 in Wiltz. She received a BA and an MFA from the School of Fine Arts, Bordeaux and completed a Meisterschulerstudium in photography at the Academy of Visual Arts, Leipzig. Recent exhibitions include Deep Deep Down at Mudam Luxembourg (2023) and What remains is an intermediary thing, repeated at Reuter Bausch Gallery, Luxembourg (2023). She was a resident at the Centre national de l’audiovisuel, Luxembourg (2022); ISELP, Brussels (2021);  Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris (2021); Biermans-Lapôtre Foundation, Paris (2018); Darling Foundry, Montreal (2017) and Islington Mill, Manchester (2016). She was included in the 2018 edition of the Rencontres de la photographie, Arles as well as the 2016 edition of the European Month of Photography, Berlin. In 2018, she was awarded the LEAP — Luxembourg Encouragement for Artists Prize.

The third edition of this Visual Arts focus has firmly established itself in the agenda of the Luxembourg Art Week. The five artists selected by Austrian curator Mirela Baciak welcomed fourteen professionals from four different countries who had come to discover the Luxembourg contemporary art scene. These meetings gave rise to fruitful exchanges that Kultur | lx is committed to developing over the long term.

Mudam Luxembourg – Musée d’art contemporain Grand-Duc Jean welcomed fourteen curators, art centre directors, critics and contemporary art experts from Austria, Germany, Belgium and France who had been invited by Kultur | lx. A two-and-a-half-day programme, alternating visits to artists’ studios, associations and institutions, talks and informal discussions, was offered to familiarise them with the players who are making contemporary art happen in Luxembourg.

The heart of a Focus – and undoubtedly its most eagerly awaited part by professionals and artists alike – lies in the visits to the artists’ studios or, for those based abroad, in the presentation of their portfolios. This year, Mike Bourscheid, Serge Ecker, Sophie Jung, Claudia Passeri and Nora Wagner have been selected by Mirela Baciak, Director of the Salzburger Kunstverein in Austria, to open the doors of their artistic worlds to these guests with their keen eyes. This meeting provides an opportunity to exchange views on the artist’s work and on more open questions about the current state of contemporary art in both its political and social dimensions. These frank and rich discussions are a source of reflection for everyone, but they also enable some artists to explore new professional horizons, since two of the artists featured within the Focus 2022 programme will have major solo exhibitions in 2024, thanks to invitations from professionals who took part in the event.

Mirela Baciak, who attended the 2022 Focus as a guest, immediately showed an interest in curating the 2023 edition. She made a wide-ranging selection from among the dozens of portfolios submitted, focusing on two main themes: queer cultures and the climate crisis, but the common thread was the shared values expressed by all the artists, however diverse and eclectic their practices.

The partnership with the Luxembourg Art Week enabled the group to visit the fair exclusively during the preview. Alongside the formats already implemented last year, this year’s fair also featured a number of new partnerships that helped to diversify the offering for professionals. In addition to the exhibitions at Mudam Luxembourg, the Konschthal Esch and the Casino Luxembourg – Forum d’Art Contemporain, attendees could also discover Vewa, a space developed by the Dkollektiv collective, and the Nei Liicht art centre in Dudelange, which presented a solo exhibition by Letizia Romanini, and finally the Bridderhaus artists’ residence in Esch-sur-Alzette, where the artist Claudia Passeri welcomed the professionals to a performative dinner under the title “Papillons de résistance”.

Finally, the 2023 Focus dealt with the theme of artistic research, the various forms it can take, its political development and its artistic materiality. Art historian and critic Sandra Delacourt gave a lecture at the Luxembourg Art Week on the theme of The Artist Researcher as a figure in the zeitgeist, but also as a political creation, through an analysis of the career of Donald Judd. Finally, the Focus ended with an afternoon of debate and exchange at Casino Display, which had co-organised with Kultur | lx pitch-presentations by researchers and artists on their research practices, followed by debates on current issues facing artists in this field.

This third edition has consolidated existing links with neighbouring scenes and opened up prospects for territories that will be highlighted in 2024, such as Belgium and Germany. The event is generating medium- and long-term impact, and the challenge that lies ahead is to make the most of this contribution.

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Since 2016, Lët’z Arles has been bringing a bit of Luxembourgish creation to the Rencontres d’Arles. As an association that supports and promotes photography and artists linked to Luxembourg, Lët’z Arles offers each year to artists a complete creation and diffusion device. From July 1 to September 22, 2024, Luxembourg photographer Michel Medinger will be exhibiting at Chapelle de la Charité, curated by Sylvie Meunier.

Born in Luxembourg in 1941, Michel Medinger gradually developed a regular photographic practice. A self-taught photographer, he has experimented with a number of techniques: B/W photography, darkroom work using his own chemistries, cibachrome and Polaroids, creating a very special world for himself. An avid collector of objects, he uses these techniques in strange compositions filled with irreverent humor. His photographs, sometimes on iconoclastic subjects, are imbued with a sense of humour and poetry. Beyond his studio, he draws on objects from his everyday environment to construct his compositions and photographic tableaux, like a cabinet of curiosities. By obsessively staging them, with a penchant for surrealism, he introduces a singular narrative and relationships of scale. Michel Medinger leaves nothing to chance.
His work has taken the artist all over the world. He has exhibited his Polaroid Masterprints in Beijing, and taken part in exhibitions in Luxembourg, France, the USA, Denmark, Russia, Poland and Japan.

The launch of the Luxembourg Photography Award (LUPA) and the LUPA mentorship marks a new milestone for Lët’z Arles, which has been the driving force behind Luxembourg’s presence at the Rencontres d’Arles photography festival in France for almost a decade. The move is being supported by Kultur | lx as part of its remit to promote international career development.

Since its inception in 1970, the Rencontres d’Arles has been a fixture in the calendar for photography professionals the world over. It was in 2016 that the Lët’z Arles association, building on Luxembourg’s dynamic photography scene, first brought the country to this highly selective arena, where it has since become a major presence.

LUPA winner Daniel Wagener’s exhibition opus incertum (running until 21 September) featured in the Rencontres’ official programme. Wagener (born 1988), who works in both Brussels and Luxembourg, and the exhibition’s curator Danielle Igniti have championed this project in meetings with the press and public, as well as in presentations of the concurrently published book. The latter was painstakingly put together by the artist (who is also a printer), combining the prints presented in the exhibition with risographs. The exhibition, whose title refers to Roman dry-stone structures that were not built to last, challenges the architectural and social transformations of the exhibition venue – the Chapelle de la Charité – by showcasing images of contemporary construction sites, presented in racks of the kind found in DIY or furniture stores. In this deconsecrated building, one form of worship has been replaced by another: the former still evident in the richly decorated altar, the latter a secular cult of consumption and commerce.

Although this year marked a return to the Chapelle de la Charité after the successful Romain Urhausen exhibition in the Espace Van Gogh, the Lët’z Arles project has nevertheless broken new ground. The launch of the LUPA and the LUPA mentorship represents an undeniable step forward both for the Luxembourg photography scene and for its presence in Arles. While the LUPA rewards an artist, selected by an international jury, by staging an exhibition of their work as part of the Rencontres’ official programme, the mentorship consists of a three-month mentored residency in partnership with the École Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie d’Arles (ENSP), a higher education institution dedicated to photography. The programme, which ran from January to April, enabled the mentored artists to develop their practice through masterclasses, workshops and group work sessions. As the winner of the 2023 LUPA mentorship, Brussels-based Rozafa Elshan (born 1994) benefited from this Kultur | lx-supported programme. She will be showing her work in the Display01 space at the Centre National de l’Audiovisuel (CNA) in Luxembourg from February 2024, at the same time as Daniel Wagener, who will be exhibiting in the CNA’s Pomhouse.

In partnership with Lët’z Arles, Kultur | lx organised a press trip to showcase the Arles projects as well as the exhibition Night Crossing by Martine Feipel and Jean Bechameil at the Chateauvert Contemporary Art Centre in Provence, a 90-minute journey from Arles.

In 2024, Kultur | lx will continue to support the Luxembourg scene in Arles by encouraging applications from photographers wishing to present their work at the Arles portfolio sessions, through dedicated mobility grants and by organising networking events. So expect to hear more about Luxembourg talent in Arles in the future!

Lët’z Arles in collaboration with the Centre national de l’audiovisuel (CNA) and with the support of the Ministry of Culture, is pleased to announce the creation of the Luxembourg Photography Award and the Luxembourg Photography Award mentorship.

Lët’z Arles is constantly adapting its support programmes for artists, in line with artistic needs and practices. After 7 years of generous commitment to the creative process, Lët’z Arles has renamed its support programme the Luxembourg Photography Award (LUPA).

This programme of support for artists is offered in two formats:
An exhibition at the Rencontres d’Arles for the winner of the Luxembourg Photography Award.
The winner of this first LUPA is Daniel Wagener and his exhibition opus incertum, presented at the Chapelle de la Charité as part of the 54th Rencontres d’Arles, curated by Danielle Igniti from 3 July to 24 September 2023.
The exhibition is accompanied by a publication, anchoring the project over time and providing a complementary perspective to the works on display. The publication features a number of photographs to complement those in the exhibition, as well as a series of risographs echoing the artist’s own practices.

A mentorship-residency for the winner of the Luxembourg Photography Award mentorship – with the support of Kultur | lx – Arts Council Luxembourg.
Rozafa Elshan benefited from a 3-month mentorship-residency in partnership with the Ecole nationale supérieure de la photographie d’Arles.
Between the end of January and the beginning of April, this artist development programme focused on the theme of ‘Printed Spaces’ and offered participants a full range of masterclasses, workshops and group work sessions, all under the guidance of Professor Gilles Saussier. The mentoring concluded with the presentation of an assessment of their work in the form of models and sketches of future projects.

Do you want to expand your professional network? Addressing contemporary art professionals is a key element in this process.

Dates: October 18, 2022
Timing: 09h00 – 13h30 | 14h00-18h00
Venue: Casino Luxembourg – Forum d’art contemporain

The objective of this workshop will be to prepare you to present your work in different situations and through different media in order to better communicate with professional audiences. You will focus on three types of communication situations: the portfolio, social networks and real or virtual studio visits.

Kultur | lx is pleased to welcome Margret Wibmer to lead this workshop dedicated to visual arts.

This hands-on workshop is for professional visual artists working in all types of media. You will have time to discuss your specific project with an experienced instructor/mentor and other participants, refine your approach and present it to other professionals.

Who is eligible to participate?

Participation conditions:

More information and application here.

Romain Urhausen, pioneer in Luxembourg in the 1950s and 1960s, has established himself on the international photographic scene with his singular style and experimental approach. Passionate, facetious and prolific, he is recognised as one of the most innovative photographers in Luxembourg, and has embraced subjects as varied as daily life, people at work, urban landscapes, nudes and self-portraits. His curiosity has led him to experiment constantly, both in the subjects he photographs and in the techniques he uses.

Chosen to embody the Luxembourg presence at the Rencontres d’Arles, the exhibition “Romain Urhausen, en son temps” is held at the Espace Van Gogh. This central and unavoidable place offers the necessary conditions to present numerous original photographs dating from the 1950s to the 1970s.

The opening was held on 6 July in the presence of H.R.H Prince Guillaume and Princess Stéphanie of Luxembourg, Xavier Bettel, Prime Minister and Minister of State, Sam Tanson, Minister of Culture, Martine Schommer, Ambassador of Luxembourg in France, as well as Patrick de Carolis, Mayor of Arles, Christoph Wiesner, Director of the Rencontres d’Arles and numerous Luxembourg partners and international guests. The opening ended in a very festive atmosphere with the acclaimed show by Faux Real.

As a result of an exceptional collaboration with Lët’z Arles and the CNA, a book dedicated to Romain Urhausen (published by delpire & co) was presented at the Librairie du Palais by the curator Paul di Felice and the publisher. The publication was supported by Kultur | lx.

18,585 professionals and enthusiasts have already gathered to discuss the artists and the variety of photographic practices during the first week of the Rencontres d’Arles.

“Romain Urhausen, en son temps” at the Rencontres d’Arles
Curator: Paul di Felice
Until 25 September 2022 at the Espace Van Gogh, Arles (France)

 

The Rencontres d’Arles is the most important photo festival in Europe. Thanks to the initiative of Lët’z Arles, artists from the Luxembourg scene have been able to present a project there since 2017.

Following a slightly different format from past editions and in order to give a specific opportunity to an artist already registered in the history of Luxembourg photography to exhibit in Arles, the nominators of Lët’z Arles submitted to an international jury composed of experts in photography, proposals of names of photographers likely to be shown during this 5th edition.

The jury, which met in April 2020 (at that time there was still a question of choosing the artist for the 2021 edition, which was finally postponed to 2022), unanimously chose the photographer Romain Urhausen to embody the Luxembourg presence at this edition. When his selection to exhibit in Arles was announced, the artist was deeply moved and delighted by this opportunity. He quickly began fruitful exchanges with the curator Paul di Felice, in order to build the exhibition’s itinerary together. Following the artist’s death in July 2021, the preparatory work for the project continued without his complicit gaze, but with respect for his mischievous spirit, thanks to the collaboration of his relatives and the lenders of his works.

Prolific, but little known in France, the photographic work of the Luxembourger Romain Urhausen is distinguished by his singular style between the French humanist school and the German subjective school of the 1950s and 1960s, to which he actively contributed. Often a pretext for formal and poetic exploration, his photographic subjects, also tinged with humour, go beyond a classical representation of reality. The themes that punctuate the exhibition show how everyday life, people at work, the urban landscape, the nude or the self-portrait are approached through a plastic and experimental approach. The subjective aesthetic, learned from Otto Steinert, has left its mark on Romain Urhausen’s formal language, his way of dealing with contrasts and framing, but also his way of looking at the world differently. This vision is highlighted in the exhibition, which puts the author’s photographs in dialogue with those of his peers, creating new “elective affinities”.

“Romain Urhausen en son temps”
Curator: Paul di Felice
From 4 July to 25 September 2022 at the Rencontres photographiques d’Arles – Espace Van Gogh

An exceptional collaboration with delpire & co*
As a result of an exceptional collaboration with Lët’z Arles and the NAC, a book dedicated to Romain Urhausen will be published by the French publishing house specialising in photography, delpire & co. The bilingual book (French/English) presents a selection of 48 photographs by Romain Urhausen, accompanied by a text by Paul di Felice and a contribution by critic and author Carolin Förster on Subjektive Fotografie. The exhibition includes graphic works, often captured using experimental techniques, as well as his famous photographs of Les Halles, taken before the Pavillon Baltard was demolished in 1971.

* With the support of Kultur | lx – Arts Council Luxembourg 

On 3 March 2022, Kultur | lx – Arts Council Luxembourg invited the Visual arts sector for a convivial moment of exchange at the Konschthal in Esch-sur-Alzette. This sectoral meeting was an opportunity to review the various support offered by Kultur | lx, as well as to present the actions planned for 2022. The event ended with a visit of the exhibition Instant Comedy by Filip Markiewicz (presented until 22 May 2022).

More than 35 professionals gathered in the Konschthal to discover or rediscover the support offered by Kultur | lx to the Visual arts sector.

Kultur | lx offered support to encourage mobility (mobility aid for career development; tour support; support for participation in fairs) and increase renown (Luxembourg Focus programme; promotion support) of Luxembourgish creation.

In order to raise awareness of an artist’s work within the sector and among the public, and to foster knowledge of different artistic practices, Kultur | lx supports the production of an artistic portfolio with the porfolio grant.

Finally, four residency programmes are open to Luxembourgish artists in partnership with Kultur | lx, two are exclusively dedicated to the Visual arts sector:
– Research and creation residency for Visual artists at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin;
– Research and creation residency at the Darling Foundry in Montreal, Canada;
And two multidisciplinary residencies, open to artists from all sectors:
– Multidisciplinary research and creation residency at the Cité internationale des arts in Paris;
– Research and creative residency for architects, architectural researchers, illustrators and authors at Academia Belgica in Rome.

These support will also be reinforced by actions. In the first half of 2022, Kultur | lx will set up operations to strengthen the sector’s skills and its international connections.

On 6 April 2022, a workshop will be offered to visual artists, design and craft professionals entitled: Present your approach to the international art professionals.

In addition, on an international level, scouting visits will be organised during major international events in order to discover a part of the international scene. Curated studio visits will be set up in Luxembourg to create new opportunities and connexion for the Luxembourg Visual arts scene.

The networking event that followed the presentations highlighted the needs of the sector and reinforced Kultur | lx in its role of supporting the career development of professional artists.