“Of Rage and Desire, The Beating Heart of Men” by photographer Gérard Rancinan and writer Caroline Gaudriault
Morocco
Rabat
2021
11
Continuing its celebration of photography, the Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMVI) proudly presents De rage et de désir, le coeur battant des Hommes. This unique exhibition showcases forty monumental photographs by renowned international artist Gérard Rancinan, offering a fantasized and expansive history of humanity. The visual narrative is masterfully intertwined with three compelling calligraphic installations from French author Caroline Gaudriault, creating a striking dialogue between images and stories. The exhibition invites visitors to embark on a three-part journey—”Métamorphoses,” “Wonderful World,” and “Un petit Homme dans un vaste monde”—prompting profound reflection on the complexities of our contemporary society and the enduring human condition. This thought-provoking presentation underscores the power of artistic expression to engage with universal themes of existence, change, and societal interplay.
Why should you watch this?
This compelling exhibition, ‘De rage et de désir,’ invites a profound confrontation with the intricate tapestry of the human condition, delving into the raw emotions, fervent hopes, profound disillusionments, and potent desires that define our collective and individual experiences. In today’s rapidly evolving world, where societal transformations often bring both promise and peril, this truly original and surprising artistic universe offers a vital platform for reflection. Gérard Rancinan’s masterful photographic narratives, rich with powerful metaphors and nuanced art historical allusions, serve as a critical mirror, challenging viewers to reflect deeply on society’s complex evolution and its inherent pitfalls. Paired with Caroline Gaudriault’s thought-provoking calligraphic installations, this immersive experience promises to provoke profound introspection and intellectual discourse, ensuring a transformative journey into the heart of contemporary art. By engaging with these powerful works, you will uncover how art compels us to reconsider our collective responsibilities and the enduring power of creative expression to articulate the complexities of modern existence, making it an essential exploration in our current landscape.
Abdellatif Laâbi: A Poet Passes Through
Morocco
Rabat
2024
11
Presented at the Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, the exhibition Abdellatif Laâbi: A Poet Passes Through offers an exclusive exploration of the profound influence of Abdellatif Laâbi, a pivotal figure in Moroccan culture. This multifaceted showcase delves into his expansive oeuvre as a poet, editor, translator, and painter. It illuminates how Laâbi’s innovative artistry served as a powerful voice for a generation seeking meaning, employing his diverse mediums to provoke thought and inspire critical reflection on societal paradigms.
Why should you watch this?
This exhibition offers a unique opportunity to explore the transformative world of Abdellatif Laâbi, a defining voice in Moroccan culture. His multifaceted contributions as poet, editor, painter, and thinker resonate with contemporary debates on art, identity, and the search for meaning. Featuring poems, publications, archives, paintings, and videos, the showcase reveals how Laâbi used art to question societal constructs and foster reflection. His legacy underscores the enduring human quest for meaning and the power of creativity to shape cultural narratives and inspire deeper introspection.
Sourtna. Carte Blanche to Yoriyas. Moroccan Photographers of Today and Tomorrow
Morocco
Rabat
2021
10
The work of Yoriyas, a photographer and performance artist from Casablanca, offers a powerful exploration of urban life. His artistic path began as a professional breakdancer, alongside a deep interest in mathematics and chess, before his pivotal turn to photography in 2015. With a vibrant and intuitive lens, Yoriyas examines the use of city spaces, capturing the rhythms of daily life and social change across Morocco and Africa. Internationally recognized, his evocative images have appeared in publications such as The New York Times, affirming his role in contemporary art and urban discourse.
Why should you watch this?
This exhibition invites visitors to rediscover the urban landscape through the transformative lens of Yoriyas, a Moroccan artist whose work explores movement and human interaction in contemporary cityscapes. With a background in dance, mathematics, and chess, his photography balances precision and intuition, reflecting the layered dynamics of modern life. The showcase includes his latest project, created during a recent residency, focusing on parkour and performance art with the Parkour59 association. By reclaiming and reinterpreting public space, Yoriyas reveals how physical expression can generate new narratives of identity, community, and the complexities of urban existence.
Whispers of the Forest
Canada
Ottawa
2025
8
The exhibition Whispers of the Forest presents a playful, interactive world where contemporary Korean art explores themes of nature, community, and coexistence. This immersive installation, designed especially for children and families, addresses pressing modern issues like rapid urban development, environmental loss, and displacement. The gallery becomes a forest playground featuring works by artists Um A Long, who creates sculptures from discarded materials, and Haksoon Hong, who brings his vibrant Wink Tokki World to life through murals and animations. Visitors are encouraged to engage directly with the art, moving beyond passive viewing to reflect on sustainability and our relationships with others. The experience prompts us to imagine a future where all beings can live and grow together in harmony.
Why should you watch this?
The film Whispers of the Forest asks what it means to share a world at a moment when climate change and rapid urban growth unsettle familiar ways of living. Um A Long’s sculptures, shaped from discarded materials, echo the resilience of creatures adapting to damaged environments, while Haksoon Hong’s Wink Tokki characters invite us into a universe where play and friendship make coexistence possible. Together, these voices create a mood that shifts between unease and delight, reminding us that survival and joy are intertwined. The film ultimately leaves viewers with a simple yet urgent question: how do we choose to live together?
Sergiy Bratkov. My Brother’s Cats | Immersive Artist Tour
Germany
Magdeburg
2024
43
Sergiy Bratkov (b. 1960) is renowned for his radically unsettling and striking photographs that, beneath their vivid surface, present an unflinching report on societal conditions. Like other members of the “Kharkiv School of Photography,” his work over the past 30 years has focused on social photography. In spring 2022, the Ukrainian artist, who had been living in Moscow since 2004, emigrated to Berlin. His recent work, previously centered on outdated Soviet-era clichés and the brash new capitalism of post-Soviet Ukraine, has now been sharply refocused by the brutal realities of the ongoing war.
In this exhibition, Bratkov presents new cycles of images and videos created since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The once ironic observer has transformed into a reflective analyst, confronting the horrors of war in his former homeland. His new works grapple with this trauma while resisting the pull of hopelessness.
Why should you watch this?
HOW TO SURVIVE ― Art as Survival Strategy | with Carina Plath
Germany
Hannover
2020
34
The group exhibition presents a compelling exploration of how art provides resilience in times of personal and societal crisis. The exhibition features works by renowned artists like Gustav Metzger, Shusaku Arakawa, and Alina Szapocznikow, each of whom faced extreme adversity and transformed their experiences into profound artistic statements. Whether addressing environmental destruction, illness, or existential threats, these artists used creativity as a means to survive and challenge the limits of human endurance. The exhibition emphasizes the power of art to propose alternative perspectives when the world seems trapped in binary thinking. By engaging with radical artistic responses to crisis, visitors are invited to reflect on how creativity can offer strength, hope, and new possibilities for navigating the uncertainties of modern life. Art, in this context, becomes more than expression — it becomes a strategy for survival and transformation.
Why should you watch this?
The exhibition tackles pressing issues like climate change, personal trauma, and social upheaval, and having a knowledgeable guide helps to bring those themes to life. It’s not just about admiring the art; it’s about understanding the stories and survival strategies that inspired each piece. This context makes the art resonate even more, helping you connect with the messages in a meaningful way. In a time when we’re all looking for ways to navigate challenges, a guided tour offers fresh insights that can spark reflection and inspire hope.
CLUBS of the FUTURE. Common Spaces in Transitional Societies
Germany
Berlin
2024
54
CLUBS of the FUTURE explores the legacy of communal spaces, particularly the Houses of Culture across Europe and the former GDR, as it reflects on contemporary practices of collectivity and reform. Emerging from research into the 1,800 GDR Houses of Culture—two-thirds of which were closed post-reunification—the project addresses the societal gaps exploited by right-wing groups. Featuring innovative workshop formats, the exhibition includes Ina Wudtke’s video Greif zur Feder (Grab a Pen), Andrea Pichl’s Klub Zukunft (Future Club), and Ming Wong’s KONTAKTHOPE. Highlighting future-oriented projects, it also showcases garden initiatives like Katya Gardea Browne’s A Floating Garden & Exchange of Seeds, emphasizing the ongoing negotiation of shared civic spaces in times of transition. More at https://www.clubsofthefuture.net/
Why should you watch this?
Actually, the Dead Are Not Dead. Una forma de ser. | Introduction
Germany
Stuttgart
2020
The exhibition explores the interplay between celebration and political expression, rooted in the context of marginalized communities. Drawing inspiration from the Bergen Assembly 2019, this exhibition examines how festivities serve as platforms for social emancipation and self-determination, particularly within the Rom*nja, Flamenco, and Bohemian cultures since the 19th century. By interweaving historical and contemporary works, the exhibition highlights the transformative power of communal gatherings, where joy, rebellion, and artistic innovation intertwine. Una forma de ser invites visitors to reflect on the significance of togetherness, creativity, and resilience in the face of adversity.
Why should you watch this?
GASTEV. How to Work
Russia
Moscow
2019
66
The exhibition GASTEV. How to Work examines the profound influence of Alexey Gastev, a key figure in Soviet thought and the founder of the Central Institute of Labor (CIT). Gastev’s work in the 1920s and 1930s revolutionized labor practices through his development of scientific labor organization (NOT), blending Marxist ideology with avant-garde approaches to efficiency, biomechanics, and human-machine interaction. His theories sought to transform workers into precise, efficient elements of industrial production, reflecting the broader Soviet utopian vision of reshaping society through labor. The exhibition contextualizes Gastev’s role not just as an organizer but as a visionary whose ideas on human potential and mechanization resonate with contemporary discussions on automation and the future of work. Despite his execution during the Stalin’s Great Purge/Terror, Gastev’s legacy continues to provoke thought on the relationship between labor, politics, and the shaping of the modern human.
More at http://avantgarde.center/gastev (in Russian only)