Few things I know about Barthélémy Toguo… The colorful barrels represent his childhood : “when I was a kid, I used to bring water at home, it was hard. I paint barrels with colors to bring fun“. The scales with iron nails, on the walls, or the ones painted (pictures below) : “Each scale representes a lifelong journey“. Some ladders have more rungs and iron nails… The African proverbs that pursue “universality“, selected excerpts : “Heart is not a knee that we can bend”, “Say yes won’t stop the one who refuses to refuse”… Brillant, as those draws showing “what we have in head” and  “this wall was empty“. The entire series represent fifty draws. Me : “I know I ‘ve recently seen some of your artwork. I can’t remember where…” Amused he anwsers me : “At the Biennale de Lyon, coffins… ”

Me : “Yes! Of course, near the entrance! I knew your name reminded me things!”. I won’t discribe you the audience around, looking at me as if I was a poor E.T. lost in the middle of nowhere! I’ve always wanted to understand why some grown-up people need to adore (like teenagers) an artist, a politician, a model, guru, or everything-supposed-to-be-a- human-being, granted of a talent and/or a charism. And for sure Barthélémy Toguo’s got the both, talent and charisma, famous artist of the contemporary art scene. But happy poor minded like me,  who never reads a line about the artist of the exhibition he watches. I watch, it’s the principe of an exhibition, isn’t it? And if I enjoy it, I read or chat with the artist. And I won’t show you the “Shower life” happening too. When everybody was shooting like mad the performance in the great space of La Verrière, in the Hermès shop. I believe that the first interest of a performance is to be present and attend the live, not to be watched in streaming. A meteor meeting with the univers of a prolix artist, his artwork, my vision, your curiosity… Enjoy!

Infomations : La Verrière, Hermès, 50 boulevard de waterloo, Bruxelles 1000, Phone : + 32 (0)2 511 20 62. Exhibition from Novembre 4th till December 17th 2011, open from monday to saterday, from 11 a.m. till 6 p.m.

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