Brognon Rollin Wins 2026 Marcel Duchamp Prize for Sobriety Token Works

David Brognon (b. 1978) and Stéphanie Rollin (b. 1980) were named winners of the 2026 Prix Marcel Duchamp on Thursday, 22 October at 19h at the Musée d'Art moderne de Paris. The duo, formed in 2006 after meeting at the Mudam in Luxembourg — where Rollin assisted the director and Brognon worked as a registrar — prevailed over Joël Andrianomearisoa (b. 1977), Laura Henno (b. 1976) and Josèfa Ntjam (b. 1992). Their proposal centers on sobriety tokens, modest medals given to former alcoholics in support groups to mark each stage of abstinence; the pair has collected them for four years, amassing what their gallery MFC – Michèle Didier describes as more than 5,000 years of sobriety. In the nominees' exhibition, the tokens sit inside claw machines, subjecting them to chance. Connected nightlights wired live to Kate, sober for eight years, shift in intensity with her mood. The ADIAF awarded the prize in its 26th edition, one year after honoring painter Xie Lei (b. 1983). The MAC VAL in Vitry-sur-Seine devoted a major retrospective to the duo in 2020, featuring 24H Silence, a jukebox whose tracks were replaced by recordings of moments of silence, and Résilients (2017), a metal gate with a single opening commemorating the closure of a Belgian Caterpillar plant that left 2,500 workers jobless. "We are not activists," Rollin said. "We whisper things rather than shout them." The nominees' exhibition runs from 2 October 2026 to 7 February 2027.