Poincheval and Tixador's Extreme Performances at Galerie In Situ

The duo Abraham Poincheval and Laurent Tixador presented their latest performance, 'Arène,' at Galerie In Situ in Paris from May 15 to June 14, 2008. For one night, they fought thousands of mosquitoes inside a sealed space, using elastic bands to kill them. The only trace is a canvas covered in crushed mosquitoes, mixing their blood with that of the artists. This work continues their series of radical experiences. In 2001, they illegally occupied a nature reserve on Frioul Island near Marseille, living as Paleolithic hunter-gatherers for a week, naked except for penis sheaths, eating mussels and prickly pears. In 2002, they walked in a straight line from Nantes to Caen to Metz using only a compass, culminating in an exhibition. Their most spectacular project, 'Horizon moins 20,' took place in Murcia, Spain, in early 2008: for 20 days, they dug a tunnel in a straight line, filling it behind them like moles. In Marseille (Friche la Belle de Mai, July 2007) and Nice (La Station, March-April 2008), they were walled up for 15 days in extreme captivity with minimal food and no amenities, using Ricoré juice as ink to write on walls. Critic Paul Ardenne describes their work as a 'poetics of adventure,' where they leave the contemporary art world to import another reality. Jean-Marc Huitorel notes they invent gestures, techniques, and endure suffering and terror.