Didier Faustino's Dystopian Furniture at Cité de l'architecture

Didier Faustino's exhibition 'Le Meilleur des mondes' at the Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine in Paris (October 20 – December 4, 2011) presents two installations exploring the body, gender, and human relations. In the entrance hall, a circle of armchairs—some Louis XV style with raised legs, others hybrid with two seats and one backrest—creates a conspiratorial atmosphere. The latter, titled 'Les Liaisons dangereuses,' feature an oval hole at neck height, suggesting violence. The exhibition poster shows a hooded young man slumped in one chair, evoking John the Savage from Huxley's novel. The second installation, in the gallery of casts beneath church tympana from Autun, Avallon, and Charlieu, arranges armchairs in concentric circles, referencing Huxley's social hierarchy from alphas to epsilons. A podium with a flag bearing a symbol combining male, female, and male-female signs forms a piece titled 'Queer.' Faustino's previous exhibition at the Fondation Gulbenkian in Lisbon was 'Don't Trust Architects' (2011).