Palais de Tokyo's 2014 Program 'Etat du Ciel' Explores World-Shaping Forces Through Contemporary Art

The Palais de Tokyo launches its 2014 program titled 'Etat du Ciel,' drawing inspiration from Victor Hugo's poetic line about the nocturnal sky. This ambitious series unfolds in three distinct phases throughout the year, featuring simultaneous exhibitions from a dozen contemporary artists. Their collective and individual presentations will interrogate the moral, physical, and political dimensions influencing our global reality, occasionally suggesting transformative poetic approaches. The first segment commences on February 14, showcasing an installation by Georges Didi-Huberman and Arno Gisinger that translates lamentation into cinematic language, alongside selected performative works from the Centre National des Arts Plastiques collection. Part two, starting April 25, and part three, beginning in June, will include significant contributions: Hiroshi Sugimoto presents a series of ten fictions contemplating humanity's potential extinction, while Ed Atkins offers digital variations. Thomas Hirschhorn's installation 'Flamme Eternelle' will facilitate debates among intellectuals and poets on the nexus of art and philosophy. Complementing the visual displays, a festival of talks, events, and performances is scheduled, inaugurated by a performance from Moroccan artist Mounir Fatmi. The overarching program structure allows visitors to experience four concurrent exhibitions at any given time during its run.