EXPOSITION - TOTEMS - GALERIE OPENSPACE

Our relationships with the world are not homogeneous, but always composite. They express themselves in different ways, depending on the context in which they exist and the person who initiates them.

According to Charles Stepanoff in his book Attachements, Enquête sur nos liens au-delà de l'humain, "Every being is divided into two levels, one of which projects itself into the visible in the form of a body, the other into the invisible through its soul or spirit, i.e. its dispositions to interact with the world as a subject. To perceive subjectivities* among non-humans often implies postulating and exploring an invisible dimension of their existence, beyond the reach of sensory perception".

This double level of interaction is found mainly in totemistic societies. Philippe Descola explains that totemism characterizes societies where there is an identity in both the interiority and physicality of groups of humans and "their" non-human correspondents. For Claude Levi-Strauss, totemism would thus be a way of naming a fusional relationship with nature, in contrast to the Western way of thinking that dissociates nature and culture.

A "totem" is symbolically embodied as an emblem, a fetish, a good-luck charm or a protective element by those who designate it as such. A totem personifies a clan or family, and emblematically designates the type of relationship its members have with their environment. It can be embodied as much in a being as in a thing. As the Chukch Korawge shaman, quoted in Charles Stépanoff's book Totemism One, explains: "Every being is alive: the lamp works, the walls of the house have their voice [...]. The reindeer antlers placed on the grave rise at night and go in procession around the mounds, and the dead themselves rise and visit the living", the principal being the incarnation of the world he represents for those who designate him.

The "Totems" exhibition brings together artists who, through one of their works, express their own relationship with and representation of the world. Visitors are invited to find their own totem and take it home with them.

*Intersubjectivity is the idea that human beings are thinking subjects capable of taking into account the thoughts of others in their own judgments.

With Hélène Bleys, Pascal Brateau, Sophie Chazal, Estelle Chrétien, Miguel Costa, Julie Freichel, Sophie Lécuyer, Emma Perrochon, Aurélie Pertusot, Céline Poutas, Eva Prusiewicz, Yumi Takeuchi & Paul Hommage, Tsugi and Marina Uribe

Show less