Galerie La Forest Divonne exhibits in its space at 12 rue des Beaux-Arts, the artists that it had planned to present on its stand at the Paris Photo Art Fair.
In 2018, Elsa & Johanna seek seclusion in the city of Calgary, Canada. By photographing themselves in old-fashioned interiors, they capture the atmosphere of a border area “without history”, of residential areas surrounded by the immensity of nature. The photographs chosen analyze and question a feeling of solitude and confinement. The two characters lead us in their expectations and their dreams, on the border between reality and fiction.
“The Beyond the Shadows self-portrait series, produced between 2018 and 2019 in Calgary, Canada, connects our self-fictional creative process, our love for directing and our strong taste for cinema.
We carried out this project in total immersion for a month. From styling to locating the sets, from accessorizing to the play of characters, we develop our staging in complete privacy and autonomy. The suburban neighborhoods of the city and the hilly landscapes around it have been a vast field of exploration and a great source of inspiration for us. ”
Elsa & Johanna
Elsa Parra & Johanna Benaïnous, born in 1990 and 1991 respectively, form the duo of visual artists, photographers and directors Elsa & Johanna. Originally from the Basque Country and Brittany, they met at the School of Visual Arts in New York in 2014. Elsa Parra was then a student at Decorative Arts in Paris while Johanna Benaïnous was studying at Beaux-Arts in Paris. In 2015, they made a name for themselves with the series of self-portraits “A Couple of Them”, in which they play fictitious characters, occupying the role of models, photographers, stylists and set designers. The staging of oneself becomes a recurring theme in their personal work.
Elsa & Johanna : Beyond the shadows
Until February 3, 2021
Galerie La Forest Divonne Paris
12 rue des Beaux-Arts 75006 Paris
mardi – samedi 11h-19h
www.galerielaforestdivonne.com
