Société Générale's 'L'Eau et le Diamant' Exhibition Questions Natural Resource Value

The Société Générale bank presents 'L'Eau et le Diamant' (Water and Diamond), an exhibition curated by Lauranne Germond, co-founder of the ecological culture coalition COAL. The show runs until June 30, 2024, at the Société Générale tower in Puteaux, La Défense, Paris. Drawing from the bank's contemporary art collection of nearly 2,000 works, supplemented by external loans, the exhibition features 48 artists and explores the relative value of natural resources—diamonds as financial speculation versus water as an essential, threatened life source. Organized into twelve thematic sections, including 'Vendre la peau de l'ours' and 'Rendements infinis,' the exhibition addresses environmental degradation, anger, and care through works such as Nadav Kander's 'Chongqing IV' from his Yangtze River Project, Jivya Soma Mashe's 'Fishnet' (2015) using acrylic and cow dung, Romain Bernini's 'Spirits Return' (2023), and Suzanne Husky and Stéphanie Sagot's 'L'Aventure du vivant' (2022) from the Nouveau Ministère de l'Agriculture. The exhibition is open to employees and visitors by appointment.