JR exhibits at the Opéra Bastille in tribute to the nursing staff

JR, the contemporary artist who owes his notoriety to the technique of photographic collage makes you discover his new work in the center of Paris, on the facade of the Bastille Opera where he brought together 500 faces of caregivers in collaboration with the collective  » Protect your caregiver.  »

The collective was created last March during the pandemic to support hospital staff. He bought and delivered medical equipment to nearly 400 healthcare establishments in France (including Corsica and Mayotte), thanks to donations from over 6,800 individuals, companies and foundations to the tune of 7.4 million euros collected.

Born in Paris on February 22, 1983, JR, whose real name is Jean René, spent his childhood in Montfermeil, mostly at the Clignancourt flea market where his parents had a stand. From adolescence, he started graffiti. Attached to multiculturalism, he claims to be a follower of Zoroastrianism founded by Zarathoustra, which is why he exhibits freely on walls around the world, thus attracting the attention of those who do not usually visit museums and who define himself as an « urban artist. « , his posters are an opportunity to » give everyone the opportunity to share his portrait « but also to » transform his message into a work of public art.

We find his images in the very cities of his subjects, his images go around the world from New York to Berlin, from Amsterdam to Paris where he is represented by gallery owners (in Paris, Hong-Kong, New-York, China and Switzerland). It can also be found on social networks.

Sharing his time between Paris and New York, he employs fifteen people in the 2 studios he owns and organizes exhibitions where he offers visitors their portrait poster using a giant photo booth.

His adventure began in 2001 when he found a camera in the Paris metro. He then decides to travel Europe to meet those who speak on the walls and facades; he sticks their portraits in the streets, basements and on the roofs of Paris.

In 2004, JR created the exhibition « Toit et moi, » in association with his fiancee the artist Prune Nourry who produced sculptures which she positioned on Parisian roofs and were then photographed by JR.

From 2004 to 2006, he produced « Portrait of a generation », portraits of young people from the suburbs which he exhibited, in very large format, on the walls of the city of Les Bosquets de Montfermeil. The initially illegal project became official when the Paris city hall displayed its photos on its buildings. It is for the artist, his desire to bring art to the street.

In 2005, when he participated in the feature film by Kim Chapiron (Kourtrajmé) Sheitan, with Vincent Cassel, as set photographer, he met Shepard Fairey, Blu, Zevs, Blek le rat, Influenza, The London Police, to direct a report on international urban activists.

In 2007, with Marco, he produced « Face 2 Face », the largest illegal photo exhibition ever created where JR displayed huge portraits of Israelis and Palestinians face to face in 8 Palestinian and Israeli cities on both sides. other from the security gate. Upon his return to Paris, he sticks these portraits in the capital.

His « 28 Millimeters » project, which he started in Clichy-Montfermeil in 2004, continues after the Middle East in 2007, in Brazil and Kenya for « Women Are Heroes » (2008-2011), photos of faces and looks of women whose documentary was presented at the Cannes festival in 2010 (Critics’ Week).

In March 2011, he received the Ted Prize at Long Beach in California, which offered him the opportunity to formulate a wish to change the world. He creates Inside Out, an international and global participatory art project that allows people around the world to receive a print of their portrait, then paste it to support an idea, a project, an action and share this experience. This is how JR creates an « infiltrating art ». More than 300,000 people have already taken part in the project, in 129 countries.

The Inside Out Photographic Booths bring the project to the street, making tens of thousands all over the world, such as at the Center Pompidou (Paris), London and Amsterdam, Japan, Dallas as well as the Rencontres de la Photographie in (Arles ), several cities in Israel and Palestine, in Abu Dhabi, at Galerie Perrotin (Paris).

In June 2014, the project « Au Panthéon! » covers the nave and the cover with 4,000 faces during its repair work. The same year, he collaborated with the New York City Ballet using dance to tell the riots in the Clichy-Montfermeil district. He created « Les Bosquets », a ballet and short film, the music of which is composed by Woodkid, Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams, and which is presented at the Tribeca Film Festival. He also works in the abandoned Ellis Island Hospital, an important place in the history of immigration, and directs the short film ELLIS, with Robert De Niro.

In 2016, JR was invited by the Louvre, he made the Pyramid disappear with the help of a surprising anamorphosis. He unveils his exhibition-workshop « You are here » at the Children’s Gallery of the Center Pompidou aimed at enabling the youngest to become one-day colliers.

The same year, during the Rio Olympic Games, he created new creations for the beauty of the sporting gesture.

In 2017, he co-produced with Agnès Varda « Faces, Villages » (official selection at the Cannes festival, out of competition). The film was awarded the Eye of Gold (best documentary) and nominated for the César and the Oscar in the same category in 2018. JR is also one of the artists represented at the Graffiti Museum in Paris from 2017 to 2018, L ‘Aerosol, Maquis-art Hall of Fame. He also produced « The picnic at the border » on the border between the United States and Mexico.

In March 2018, he decorated the solidarity restaurant « le Reffetorio », installed at the Foyer de la Madeleine in the crypts of the church. It serves 100 meals concocted from unsold food for the poor, migrants, and the homeless. He also covers the tunnels of St Lazare station with his posters.

In 2019, he made an impression on the Louvre pyramid as if the pyramid was rising from the ground.

In 2020, he photographed 150 citizens of the Citizen’s Climate Convention and glued the photos to the façade of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council and covered the Opéra Bastille with portraits of nursing staff, produced by Adrien Lachappelle, David Huguonot and Nathalie Naffzger and captured in more than a dozen establishments across France, from Paris to Nantes via Colmar or Bobigny.

These photos are hung on the facade of the Opera Bastille from July 8, 2020 at the end of the month.

About The Author