Déjà vu Exhibition at Passerelle Centre d’art contemporain Explores Familiarity and Perception

Passerelle Centre d’art contemporain presents the exhibition 'Déjà vu,' which examines the psychological phenomenon of experiencing familiarity with images and situations that feel previously encountered. The show features works that replay, repeat, and reshape forms, images, and movements from collective memory, art history, and popular culture, creating a sense of recognition followed by doubt. Oliver Beer's video, positioned centrally, demonstrates this process by gradually reconstructing a recognizable cartoon image, allowing memory to form alongside the visual. Surrounding pieces include paintings, drawings, photographs, and other videos that amplify this experience, using art historical references, repeated motifs, and hazy impressions. The exhibition invites visitors to observe how images shift from familiar to strange, emphasizing that déjà vu is not about the past but about contemporary ways of seeing in an image-saturated world. Artists work with known images and styles, altering them to create unease and hesitation in the viewer. The exhibition does not tell new stories but focuses on the act of looking itself, suggesting that while what we see may not be entirely new, our emotional responses can be. Visitors are encouraged to take their time and accept initial lack of understanding, engaging with the subtle discrepancies in the works.