The Odyssey is a book, a myth, a world. This year, the Villa Carmignac will present an exhibition inspired by the Greek hero who sailed for ten years to return home after the Trojan War (The Iliad). Legend has it that Ulysses reached the shores of Porquerolles Island, where he fought and struck down the Alycastre, the monster sent by Poseidon and sculpted by the artist Miquel Barceló at the entrance of the Villa Carmignac.
On this wild Mediterranean island off the coast of Hyères in the South of France, where the light, sea, trees and caves are the same as in Homer’s time, gods and myths are still very much alive. The Odyssey continues to accompany us and to help us live, like some more contemporary works of art, which sometimes light our way.
Unlike classical labyrinths, which are devoid of references, this one has the particularity of being populated by works of art. You will wander through the maze, making choices about which path to take and coming face to face with works depicting women and seduction, monsters and their terrifying potential, heroes, fabulous and divine beings, animals and more. Among these human and non-human figures, in the labyrinth, travelers may recognize a little of themselves, and discover the means with which to explore their own secrets.
For Ulysses, it is a journey of the return to the self, as well as to his island; for the visitors, walking in his footsteps and forging new paths on this island, it is a contemporary and intimate odyssey.
Artists include Micol Assaël, John Baldessari, Miquel Barceló, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Marinus Boezem, Louise Bourgeois, Mark Bradford, Francesco Clemente, Adger Cowans, Willem de Kooning, Niki de Saint Phalle, Olafur Eliasson, Haris Epaminonda, Leandro Erlich, Urs Fischer, Cyprien Gaillard, Douglas Gordon, Duane Hanson, Keith Haring, Camille Henrot, Jenny Holzer, Thomas Houseago, Rashid Johnson, William Kentridge, Yves Klein, Oliver Laric, Roy Lichtenstein, Tony Matelli, Adam McEwen, Janaina Mello Landini, Bruce Nauman, Marilène Oliver, Jorge Peris, Alessandro Piangiamore, Benoît Pype, Carol Rama, Ann Ray, Man Ray, Martial Raysse, Odilon Redon, Gerhard Richter, James Rosenquist, Miguel Rothschild, Arcangelo Sassolino, Egon Schiele, Cindy Sherman, Günther Uecker, Willem Adriaan van Konijenburg, Adrián Villar Rojas, Andy Warhol
Curated by Francesco Stocchi
