Urgent Painting at Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris: A Critical Review

The exhibition 'Urgent Painting' at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (January 17 to March 3, 2002) was curated by Hans-Ulrich Obrist, Laurence Bossé, and Julia Garimorth, with contributions from 18 associate curators. It featured works by 32 artists from around the world, spanning abstract, figurative, installation, and digital painting. The show aimed to celebrate a supposed revival of painting, but the critic Richard Leydier argues that the curators' own skepticism undermines the project. Many associate curators, including Liam Gillick, Okwui Enwezor, and Éric Troncy, expressed doubts about painting's relevance. Troncy even presented an installation by Alain Séchas instead of paintings, which became a highlight of the exhibition. The catalog reveals a focus on political and social content over formal analysis, with Enwezor controversially suggesting painting remains relevant in the 'Third World' due to a delayed reception of modernism. Leydier criticizes the exhibition's lack of coherent vision and suggests it may have been rushed to beat a similar show at Centre Pompidou later that year.