The Patrick Tosani retrospective in Montpellier is impressive and essential. It was curated by François Cheval, who introduced the work as follows:
By stating that I am always ready, twenty years after first meeting him, to work with Patrick Tosani, I suppose that my opinion of Changements d’État might be biased—all the more so since I’m the curator! I believe that this is the most lucid of any recent exhibition devoted to the photographer, due in part to the layout of the space and to the commitment of the team at the Pavillon Populaire.
Changements d’État is not a discovery in itself. Gilles Tiberghien, a great connoisseur of Tosani’s work, has previously shed light on the meaning of these photographs. He laid bare the disturbing, liquid, viscous, almost disturbing nature of these shapes that resist common sense. The spirit of the series and the retrospective aspect, so present at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie, recede in favor of a story about the origin of the photographic shapes. This is the first time that viewers will see pieces taken Tosani’s series juxtaposed with other pieces. The years intersect. The visit ends with never-before-seen works. The path through the exhibition is an endless loop.
— François Cheval, exhibition curator
Read the full article on the French version of L’Oeil
