In 1956, the French artists Gil J. Wolman and Guy Debord proposed a guide to détournement, re-purposing advertisements and magazines as a means of subverting society. This practice, which included cutting up city maps to encourage unplanned excursions through the city of Paris, was a way to effect disorientation. As the writers stated: “not many people would remain unaffected by an exact reconstruction in one city of an entire neighbourhood of another”.
Détour presents selected works from the collection of the FRAC Bretagne in Rennes, France. In addition to Gil J. Wolman’s 1960s collages, the exhibition includes artworks such as Raymond Hains’ photographs of signs found in rural villages, Vera Molnar’s computer-generated renderings of the Saint-Victoire mountain range, and Charlotte Moth’s filmed depiction of Parisian architecture. Thomas Teurlai and Ugo Schiavi’s display showcases scrolls of recovered graffiti samples, while Isabelle Arthuis’ evocative black-and-white images capture the landscape during a nocturnal eclipse. Through works by contemporary international artists, Détour reimagines and reconstructs the FRAC Bretagne collection, transposed to Rennes’ sister city of Cork and the Glucksman’s unique architectural setting.
Détour: Selected works from the FRAC Bretagne collection is supported by The Arts Council Ireland, University College Cork and private philanthropy through Cork University Foundation.
