Bili Bidjocka
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Bili Bidjocka is a contemporary
Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
ian artist best known for his installations and sculptures. He was born in
Douala Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and its economic capital. It is also the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Region (Cameroon), Littoral Region. Home to Central Africa's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Ai ...
,
Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
, lives in France since the age of 12, and works in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
,
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
and
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.


Biography

In 1975, Bidjocka and his family move to Paris where he studied at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts. In 1985, he is co-founder of the Parisian underground association Les Frigos, aiming to support creative talent. Starting in 1994, as an artist and as a curator, he works on several cultural projects and in 1995 he co-founded and directed the contemporary Art Center ''the Matrix Art Project'' in New York, a platform of production and experimentation. Between 1998 and 2007, he supervises the Matrix Art Project contemporary art center in Brussels, where he lives in those years. In 2007, Bidjocka moves back to Paris. Bili Bidjocka's works consist of art installations, sculptures and conceptual projects. After a period of painting, he realizes installations adopting writing as an integral part of his work. His work acts like a puzzle, a riddle that gives the artist the answers he needs about the sense of his art. Cameroonian processions and ceremonies characterize his work, adopting metaphors to make the artist think about loss and absence, on the one hand, and about ecstasy and suspended desire, on the other. Bili Bidjocka has attended numerous collectives and he has shown in the
Biennale Biennale (), Italian for "biennial" or "every other year", is any event that happens every two years. It is most commonly used within the art world to describe large-scale international contemporary art exhibitions. As such the term was popularis ...
of
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
(1997),
Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
(1997), Biennale Dakar (2000),
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
(2004) and
Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
(inside Check List - Luanda Pop, 2007 curated by Fernando Alvim and Simon Njami); he has exhibited his works in the
New Museum of Contemporary Art The New Museum of Contemporary Art, founded in 1977 by Marcia Tucker, is a museum in New York City at 235 Bowery, on Manhattan's Lower East Side. History The museum originally opened in a space in the Graduate Center of the then-named New Scho ...
of
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and in the exposition Africa Remix (
Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
,
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
,
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
,
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
, 2005–2007).


Works


L'écriture infinie

''L'écriture infinie'' is a work of Bili Bidjocka. It aims to write the biggest collection of handwritten books in the world because the new technologies cause the progressive extinction and replace handwritten writing. It consists of a series of books with 6000 white pages, 104cm long and 100kg. The artist declares that the public is invited to write - ''as it was the last thing to do before the cut of a hand''. On a wall nearby, an overhead view of the book is being projected in real-time. The founder act is the writing act in itself and not the reading after. Each book, once done, is packed into a linen material. The idea is that these books will be opened in a day where writing will not exist anymore. There are now existing 7 books of the work; one participated at the 52nd
Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
African Pavilion inside the exhibition ''Check List - Luanda Pop''.


Take a Cab and Go for a Ride

''Take a Cab and Go for a Ride'' is another work by Bili Bidjocka. Featured in Dak'Art 2000 exhibition, Take a Cab and Go for a Ride was an interactive art piece in the city of Dakar. Bidjocka created the piece by placing 16 flags around the city of Dakar, each one with two parallel lines representing the 'pause' symbol printed on them. Each flag was an invitation by Bidjocka to explore the city of Dakar.


Other works

* ''Skin'', (panel),
Albissola Marina Albissola Marina ( lij, A Moenn-a d'Arbisseua) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Savona in the Italian region Liguria, located about west of Genoa and about northeast of Savona. History Albissola Marina was a settlement of the I ...


Exhibitions

* « …Do Not Take It, Do Not Eat It, This Is Not My Body… », stageBACK,
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
,
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, 2012 * ''Jengu Project'', 2010, SUD Salon Urbain de Douala 2010 * ''DetourIstanbul'', 2009 * ''Detour'',
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, 2008 * ''Check List'',
Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
, 2007 * ''Exhibition 02'' - Collective exhibition, Exit11, Grand-Leez, 2007 * ''3.
Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial The Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial (ETAT) is an international contemporary art festival held once every three years in Niigata prefecture, Japan. The festival was created by the Tokyo commercial gallery Art Front Gallery (AFG) and is directed by ...
2006'', Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial, Niigata-ken, 2006 * ''Africa Remix - Contemporary Art of a Continent'', Mori Art Museum,
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, 2006 * ''EXHIBITION 00'', Exit11, Grand-Leez, 2006 * ''Tapei Biennial 2004'' - Do you believe in reality?, Taipei Biennial,
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
, 2004 * ''El Corazón de las Tinieblas'', Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 2004 * ''Black President - The Art and Legacy of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti'',
New Museum of Contemporary Art The New Museum of Contemporary Art, founded in 1977 by Marcia Tucker, is a museum in New York City at 235 Bowery, on Manhattan's Lower East Side. History The museum originally opened in a space in the Graduate Center of the then-named New Scho ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, 2003 * ''Transferts'', Palais des Beaux Arts,
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, 2003 * ''Memórias Íntimas Marcas'', MuHKA Museum voor Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen,
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, 2000 * ''Bili Bidjocka: Reflection'', Objectif, Hal,
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, 2000 * ''Paris pour escale'', ARC musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris,
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, 2000 * '' Dak'Art 2000'',
Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...
, 2000 * ''Free Coke'', The Greene Naftali Gallery,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, 1999 * ''Bili Bidjocka, Los Carpinteros and Rivane Neuenschwander'', New Museum of Contemporary Art,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, 1998 * ''Bili Bidjocka: Crossing'', USF Contemporary Museum, Tampa, United States, 1998 * ''Alternating Currents'', Second Biennale of Johannesburg,
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
, 1997 * ''6 Biennale dell'Avana'',
La Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
, 1997


Similar Artists

*
Kendell Geers Jacobus Hermanus Pieters Geers, commonly known as Kendell Geers, is a South African conceptual artist. Geers lives and works in Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text ...
*
Tracey Rose Tracey Rose is a South African artist who lives and works in Johannesburg. Rose is best known for her performances, video installations, and photographs. Biography Rose was born in 1974 in Durban, South Africa. She attended the University o ...


See also

*
Conceptual art Conceptual art, also referred to as conceptualism, is art in which the concept(s) or idea(s) involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic, technical, and material concerns. Some works of conceptual art, sometimes called insta ...
*
Contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...
*
Installation art Installation art is an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called ...
*
Plastic arts Plastic arts are art forms which involve physical manipulation of a plastic medium by molding or modeling such as sculpture or ceramics. Less often the term may be used broadly for all the visual arts (such as painting, sculpture, film and pho ...


References


Bibliography

* Barbara Vanderlinden, ''The work of Bili Bidjocka'' in ''Do you Believe in Reality'', Taïpei Biennial, 2004. * ''The marriage of earth & night by bili bidjockain'' el corazon de las tinieblas, catalogo, 2002. * Philipe Pirotte, ''Bili Bidjocka, the jet lag experiment'' in objectif (projects), 2001. * Joël Busca, ''L'arte contemporanea africana'', L'Harmattan Italia, Torino, 2002, pp. 115–120 (ed. originale ''Perspectives sur l'art contemporain africain'', L'Harmattan, Paris, 2000). * Okwui Enwezor, ''Between Words...'' in ''Reading the Contemporary'', 1999-2000. * ''ON NAIT DANS L'ESPACE DE LA PEINTURE OU ON NE L'EST PAS'', in ''Zeitwenden'', Bonn, catalogo, 1999. * Max Borka, ''De Kerst is Kort – Bili Bidjocka'' in "Standard Magazin", Dicembre 1999. * Eduardo Costa, ''Report from Havana, The installation biennial'', in "Art in America", Marzo 1998. * Dan Cameron, ''Global Warming'', "Art Forum International", dicembre 1997. * LE PRINCIPE ET LA FAIM, Un Proyecto de Bili Bidjocka, in "Atlantica International", 18, 1997. *
Franklin Sirmans Franklin Sirmans (born in New York City (Queens)) is an American art critic, editor, writer, curator and has been the director of the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) since October 2015. His initiatives there include ensuring that PAMM's art program ...
, ''Bili Bidjocka: Mélancholia, Sophistication, And Lightness'', in "Flash Art", 32, 204, 1997. * COLLAGE (JESUIS LA SEULE FEMME DE MAVIE...), By Bili Bidjocka, "Gagarine", 1, 2, 1997. * Michel, N. (2010): Bili Bidjocka, une expérience poétique. Jeune Afrique. http://www.jeuneafrique.com/194495/culture/bili-bidjocka-une-exp-rience-po-tique/ * Ecriture Infinie (2011). Bili Bidjocka interview. https://vimeo.com/28065175 * Barbara Vanderlinden & Elena Filipovic, The work of Bili Bidjocka in Do you Believe in Reality, catalogo, Taïpei Biennial, 2004. * Condon, Robert. "Writing the body: BILI BIDJOCKA AND BATO." Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art 1995.3 (1995): 60-63. * Sean O'Toole, Bili Bidjocka Focus: Begonias, the lure of travel, endless writing and an unfinished book, "Freeze Magazine", 119, novembre-dicembre 2008. * Pensa, Iolanda (Ed.) 2017. Public Art in Africa. Art et transformations urbaines à Douala /// Art and Urban Transformations in Douala. Genève: Metis Presses. * Salley, Rael Jero. 2009. "Unfinished Visuality: Contemporary Art and Black Diaspora, 1964–2008." Order No. 3387024, The University of Chicago. * Bedford, Emma. 2001. "Dak'Art 2000: In Search of the Magic Moment." Nka : Journal of Contemporary African Art (13) (Spring): 14-17.


External links


Exhibitions on Artfacts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bidjocka, Bili Living people Installation artists People from Douala Cameroonian contemporary artists Year of birth missing (living people)