Galerie Huit Arles welcomes Amanda Sthers to Arles this year, with her exhibition Le lendemain, tout a changé curated by Laura Serani. Ever the master storyteller, Sthers fuses vintage photographs with her handwritten imaginary letters and descriptions, introducing yesteryear into our present in the most poetic and playful ways.
“About 15 years ago I bought an antique photograph of a young woman at a flea market. This portrait, which may have once been cherished by a man, lay abandoned in a box near some broken dolls, anonymous, without destiny. Back home, I invented one for her through a letter addressed to her. From flea markets, to garage sales, over the years I have collected children, families, couples who were getting married, others who had trouble pretending in front of the camera.
I took the weak clues, the dates on the back of the photos, sometimes first names, the places and I invented stories for these people in what I imagined to be their language. Sometimes I associated them with objects or other photographs… Instead of being nameless ghosts in the dust, they are now the heroes of a shattering moment of life which becomes a reality as soon as others lay their eyes on them.
Everything in my life as an artist has led me to this special creation, it combines empathy, imagination, observation, aesthetics, the ability to sketch a story in a few sentences.
These works were intended for the walls of my house but I always needed more and I could not stop inventing this imaginary family tree.
At the time of the multiplication of virtual shots, the importance of these often solemn photos appears to us with even more evidence. At the time, we had four portraits which represented a life: a baptism, a portrait, a wedding picture, a family photo.
I met Katy Wellesley Wesley who first allowed me to think that I had created works of art that had to be exhibited, brought to life, then Laura Serani who is the curator of the exhibition put them in the spotlight and plunged into my album with the eyes of a child and the gaze of a sage. It is strange for me to have created unique works and to know that they will go to sleep with other people, continue their destinies without me.
Is it a coincidence that the exhibition will take place the year my second son will also leave the nest?
Welcome to a part of who I am. I am happy to introduce you to some of my imaginary friends and family. »
Amanda Sthers
Amanda Sthers was born in Paris and now lives in Los Angeles. She has written sixteen novels, translated in more than twenty languages and was honored with the prestigious title of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French President. Her latest book THE SUSPENDED COFFEE is about to become an international TV series. For the screen, Amanda has written and directed four movies. Working with actors such as Rosanna Arquette, James Caan, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Tom Hollander, Harvey Keitel and Toni Colette. Her last movie PROMISES starring Pierfrancesco Favino, Jean Reno and Kelly Reilly premiered at the Rome Film Festival and is about to be launched on the screens worldwide.
She is also producer and CEO of IDEA(L), a company creating opportunities for new voices and female filmmakers, as well as packaging an array of projects across film and TV hoping to serve as a bridge for emerging talents and opportunities around the globe. Her latest production, BONNIE, celebrates one of the most talented casting directors, premiered in the official selection of the 2022 Venice Film Festival, and the American film festival of Deauville. MAFIA MAMMA, based on her original idea, directed by Catherine Hardwicke and starring Toni Colette and Monica Belluci is now in postproduction and was sold worldwide.
As a playwright, Sthers has written nine plays which received critical acclaim all over France and Europe including her 2006 OLD BLONDE JEW which has become a mainstay of the curriculum at Harvard University’s theatre courses teached by professor Guila Clara Kessous with whom she collaborates on different projects.
“The next day everything changed” is her first foray into the world of contemporary art.
Laura Serani, author and curator of exhibitions and photography and audiovisual projects, collaborates with various institutions and publishers in Europe and elsewhere. She has been director of the Deauville Festival, Planches Contact, since 2019.
From 2009 to 2014, she was art director of the Rencontres de Bamako, in Mali, art delegate of Mois de la Photo in Paris (2008 and 2014), President of the Jury Résidences for Photography at the Fondation des Treilles (2014 to 2021) and, in Italy, curator for Fotografia Europea-Reggio Emilia (2007 to 2015) and art director of SiFest (2007 and 2008).
In 2016, she launched Omnibus Circus, a travelling pop-up gallery and open stage. From 1985 to 2006, Laura Serani created and directed the Fnac Collection and the Fnac photo gallery network in Europe, Brazil and Taiwan. At the Fnac, she curated a multitude of exhibitions such as: Berenice Abbott, Brassaï, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Willy Ronis, William Klein, Stanley Kubrick and many others.
Main exhibitions as independent curator :
Raconte-moi une histoire (IIC Paris); Larry Fink (Rome); Françoise Huguier, NOOR, Fotografia Europea; African emerging photography, Grand Palais, Paris Photo; Ara Guler, Lost Istanbul, MEP, Paris; Malick Sidibé, La vie en rose, Collezione Maramotti, Italy; Ekaterina Foundation, Moscow, and many more.
The author of many books, she teaches at the Ecole nationale supérieure Louis Lumière and in Oeildeep workshops. She is a member of various juries and a nominator for different awards.
Galerie Huit Arles
Founded by Julia de Bierre in 2007, Galerie Huit Arles has acquired a solid reputation for the careful selection of its artists – both established and emerging – and the quality of its hangings and installations. Exhibitions are curated either independently or in collaboration. Partners have included: The Victoria & Albert Museum, London, Factum Arte Madrid, The British Journal of Photography, City Hall Kuala Lumpur, and Galerie SIT DOWN, Paris.
As well as regular exhibitions and distinguished private views, the gallery hosts artists’ residencies and thematic workshops. Much more than just an art space, this is a creative, inspirational and convivial venue in a magnificent location.
Galerie Huit Arles is affiliated to Arles Contemporain, the local network of galleries and museums, and is a member of Gallery Climate Coalition, the international community actively seeking to reduce environmental impact in the arts sector.
Amanda Sthers : Le lendemain tout a changé
Curated by Laura Serani
After an initial presentation in Paris at Galerie 75 Faubourg, the exhibition will be on show at Galerie Huit Arles throughout the summer.
Opening week of Rencontres d’Arles:
Monday 3rd to Sunday 9th July, 11h – 13h | 14h – 19h.
From 12th to 30th of July :
Wednesday to Sunday, 11h – 13h | 15h – 19h.
August and September :
Wednesday – Sunday, 15h -19h.
Guided Tour every Thursday at 16h,
Private Visits welcomed by appointment.
Galerie Huit Arles
8 rue de la Calade | 13200 Arles
+33 (0) 6 82 04 39 60
www.galeriehuitarles.com
