L’Atelier Montex – Collaborative Project with JR | November 2023 |
As part of the works at the Palais Garnier, JR invites Atelier Montex to participate in a unique project through an embroidery workshop.
As part of the restoration works at the Palais Garnier, the Opéra national de Paris invites the artist JR to dress the scaffolding covering the monument. The artist, particularly renowned for encouraging a shift in perspective on iconic landmarks worldwide, initiated a visual transformation of the Palais Garnier in September, unfolding in a two-act performance.
Act I, ‘The Entrance to the Cave’: A monumental installation reveals a cave, a motif frequently used in opera librettos.
Act II, ‘Inside the Cave’: The installation on the facade is replaced by a stage curtain depicting an interior view of the cave, conceived as a collaborative and participative work.
In line with the numerous projects undertaken by Atelier Montex in collaboration with artists, designers, and creative spaces, the Maison has renewed its invitation to explore the art of embroidery in a unique project by the artist JR.
Titled ‘Mano Habilis‘, this participatory workshop involves the public, guided by the Maison’s embroiderers and a team of passionate amateur embroiderers who are bearers of expertise. The goal is to allow each individual to leave their mark in the cave, the birthplace of cave art and self-awareness.
After imprinting their mark on fabric, participants embroidered it under the guidance of the 19M Art Houses, before immortalizing them in a portrait taken in a specially designed Inside Out photo booth for the occasion. The photos of the imprints will then be featured in the monumental work installed by JR on the facade of the Palais Garnier in November.
By exhibiting his photographs on walls worldwide, JR captures the attention of everyone, including those not accustomed to frequenting museums. His artistic practice makes the anonymous visible by pasting their portraits in public spaces, from Brazilian favelas to the streets of New York, and through the slums of Kibera. Remaining anonymous, JR allows for an encounter between the subject/protagonist of his works and the passerby/interpreter. This is the essence of JR’s work: to raise questions.
Atelier Montex is an embroidery house that offers its expertise to leading names in luxury ready-to-wear and haute couture, expanding its activity to decorative and ornamental projects. Awarded the Living Heritage Company label in 2013, Atelier Montex is rich in samples of embroidery that are both sophisticated and innovative. Since 2017, the artistic direction of Atelier Montex has been led by Aska Yamashita, who continues Montex’s creative history by incorporating new influences, always driven by a very high demand for technical quality. Her knowledge of historical craftsmanship, her versatile personality, and her bold creativity continually push the boundaries of imagination and explore territories previously unexplored by embroidery.
Located as a bridge between Paris and Aubervilliers, in the heart of an urban territory driven by tremendous energy, le19M is an exceptional architectural work designed by Rudy Ricciotti and inaugurated in January 2022. Created at the initiative of the House of CHANEL, le19M works towards the preservation and transmission of the know-how of the Crafts of Fashion and Decoration.
Photos : ©Elea Jeanne Schmitter