The roofs clad in gray zinc, the night sky reflecting the orange glow of city lights, and the towering monuments outlined against the horizon: on the rooftops of Paris, photographers may play with matter as well as with light, with formal as well as with dramatic effects. At the Quartier Art Drouot, seventeen contemporary artists are presenting their interpretations of the French capital’s rooftops.
“I spontaneously picture Parisian rooftops as very romantic,” says Joséphine de Rohan-Chabot, whose work is on view at the Chanoit Gallery. Nevertheless, she countered that image by working on the material of zinc and the slate-gray color. “What interested me was the grayness symptomatic of Paris, without over-contextualizing my images,” she explained. In the photos by this Gobelins School of Images student you will see neither sunsets nor Parisian landmarks. And yet, the reflections in the puddles and subtle shades of gray emanate a certain urban poetry.
In the images, we can distinguish zinc plates photographed so close up that they become difficult to identify as part of a Parisian rooftop. The strata of gray overlap like tectonic plates that had shifted. Black veins formed by the streaking rain and city pollution mark the surface.
Joséphine de Rohan-Chabot aimed at “a very abstract effect.” She framed her photos directly in such a way as to render the material unrecognizable. “This made me immediately think of Pierre Soulages. But, mind you, I’m not comparing myself to that artist,” she added with a chuckle.
In Arnaud Eluère’s work, which is also exhibited at the QAD, at the Cour 16 Gallery, Parisian rooftops turn into fashion show runways. Eluère has been a roof climber since his student days, “when I and my friends were lucky to live on the top floor,” he noted with a smile. One thing led to another and he started photographing fashion models on the rooftops. “I realize today that all these photos are interconnected, and that a series came together of its own accord,” he explained as he looked at the newly installed prints.
The Tour Montparnasse, the Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower, or Parisian residential buildings, all lit up at night, inevitably function as backdrops to these photographs. But the real subjects are the models who appear to watch over the city. The metallic tiles shine brightly even though it’s dark out.
Just like Joséphine de Rohan-Chabot, Eluère loves zinc and lets bright white light sweep over it. “I love the atmosphere of the rooftops just before nightfall, when street lights begin to come on and illuminate the Parisian cloud cover. At that moment, the dark blue complements the orange lights of the city.”
Go ahead, Parisians, lift your eyes up to the sky!
Cécilia Sanchez
Toits mon Paris
From September 29 to October 20, 2016
Quartier Art Drouot
12, rue Drouot
75009 Paris
http://www.quartier-art-drouot.com
http://www.arnaudeluere.com
http://www.josephinederohan.com
