JR: ACTIONS

Taking place from the 11th October – 14th November 2013 at London’s Lazarides Gallery is a two-part exhibition by French artist JR, entitled ACTIONS. JR will partner with Lazarides for a large-scale exhibition filling two floors of their flagship gallery as well as an outdoor public installation on multiple sites across the nation’s capital.

JR asks us all to become the subject, protagonist, passerby and interpreter in this global artwork.

artist: JR, “ACTIONS”

On display will be a mix of colour prints as well as his signature wood mounted monochromatic paper pieces telling the story of JR’s global initiative to employ art as a tool for global communication and understanding. Works within the gallery will highlight various actions JR has accomplished around the globe and will include images from Wrinkles of the City Project in Berlin (spring 2013), his journey to North Korea and new images recreated in 2012 from the 2004-06 project, Portrait of a Generation set in the ‘Les Bosquets’ ghetto of Paris. The buildings that featured the original images have since been destroyed so this new series sees the faces looking at each other across an abyss of time and degradation, a mise en abime that speaks to the heart of Paris’ recent history.

Out on the streets of the nation’s capital, the artist invites the community to become part of public art project, turning each participant’s portrait and identity into communal artwork. Spurred by his award of 2011 TED prize and subsequent TED Conference, JR called for the creation of a global participatory art platform: INSIDE OUT. The underlying concept of the project is to provide anyone and everyone with the opportunity to share with the world their portrait and a statement of for what they stand.

artist: JR, “ACTIONS”

Since its conception, the INSIDE OUT Project has travelled from Ecuador to Nepal, Mexico to Palestine and most recently to New York inspiring a call to action on various themes including democracy, hope, violence between gangs, immigration, and climate change. To date over 150,000 people from across 108 countries have participated in this epic art project.

And if you’re in London during October, you’ll get a chance to create your own black and white portrait in travelling INSIDE OUT trucks where they will be subsequently printed as large posters and pasted onto various iconic London sites. JR asks us all to become the subject, protagonist, passerby and interpreter in this global artwork.

Gallery Information

Lazarides Gallery
Lazarides Rathbone, 11 Rathbone Place, W1T 1HR + 44 (0) 207 636 5443
Tuesday – Saturday 11am – 7pm, admission free
www.lazinc.com

INSIDE OUT will be taking place across various sites in London, including at the site of Land Securities’ New Ludgate development situated on the City’s fringe (adjacent to St Paul’s Cathedral). Location of photobooth truck to be confirmed.