Thierry Costesèque was born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1970. He graduated from the National School for Fine Arts of Paris in 1994, and since 2010, he lives and works in and around Paris. Represented by the Eric Dupont gallery in Paris, Costosèque’s recent work has featured at conferences and in publications at the Tate Modern and ESACM. Last year his works were shown in France and around the world, notably at the Viewing Program of the Drawing Center in New York and in the framework of the McCormack and Gent Curatorial Project in London. In 2013, he was awarded a research grant from the Rothschild Foundation (FNAGP) for his latest project Western, shown at Creux de l’enfer.
His work is at the intersection of multiple practices: painting, collage, drawing, and performance. It evolves like a Road Movie, crafting a narrative of movement in the suburbs of big metropolises. His projects Demain le Nord and Western borrow from film the dual principles of plot and accessibility, and explore the gaps between “High” and “Low” culture. He therefore often references science fiction, subjecting a bustling trade city to a catastrophic scenario.
Video:
Western
2015
Video, color, sound
Duration: 22’
With the support of Residency Unlimited, CNAP, Fondation Nationale des Arts Graphiques et Plastiques (FNAGP), and the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, New York
The performance Western borrows from film the archetype of an individual confronted with a hostile universe as a starting point for a performance, which here consists of crossing Broadway Avenue on a horse. The Avenue is an old Native American trail, the only one that escapes Manhattan’s urban, linear texture. This is why Costesèque intends to travel up Broadway toward West Harlem with his horse. He is the stranger.
Time: 6:40 am
Location: Ukrainian Institute of America / Concert Hall
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