Saâdane Afif (born 1970 in Vendôme, Loir-et-Cher Département,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
Saâdane Afif graduated from the School of Fine Arts in
Bourges
Bourges ( ; ; ''Borges'' in Berrichon) is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre (Cher), Yèvre. It is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Cher (department), Cher, and also was the capital city of the former provin ...
and later received his 1998 postgraduate degree from the School of Fine Arts in
Nantes
Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...
(École des Beaux Arts). In 2001, he was in residence at the Villa Arson International Art School of
Nice
Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionVilla Médicis in
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
(Scotland). In 2003, he moved to
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
, where he currently lives and works. Afif's work has been exhibited at many venues, including the
Museum Folkwang
Museum Folkwang is a major collection of 19th- and 20th-century art in Essen, Germany. The museum was established in 1922 by merging the Essener Kunstmuseum, which was founded in 1906, and the private Folkwang Museum of the collector and patr ...
(
Essen
Essen () is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. In 2009, he received the
Marcel Duchamp Prize
The Marcel Duchamp Prize (in French : ''Prix Marcel Duchamp'') is an annual award given to a young artist by the Association pour la Diffusion Internationale de l'Art Français (ADIAF).
The winner receives €35,000 personally and up to €30,000 ...
; as a result of winning this prize, he presented his artwork in the exhibition "Anthology of black humour" at Space 315,
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
, Paris from September 2010 until January 2011. In 2011, he was the 46th most influential person in the French art world, according to the March issue of ''
Eye Magazine
''Eye'' magazine is a quarterly print magazine on graphic design and visual culture.
History
First published in London in 1990, ''Eye'' was founded by Rick Poynor, a prolific writer on graphic design and visual communication. Poynor edited t ...
''.
Art
Defined as ‘
post-conceptual
Post-conceptual, postconceptual, post-conceptualism or postconceptualism is an art theory that builds upon the legacy of conceptual art in contemporary art, where the concept(s) or idea(s) involved in the work take some precedence over traditional ...
’, Saâdane Afif's work focuses on interpretation, exchange and circulation. He works in various media (performance, objects, sculptures, text, posters and works in neon). The complex procedures he uses are not categorised under any specific discipline. All of his works are subject to a continuous process of alteration. He integrates elements of art history, music, poetry and dance into his work, sometimes inviting authors to write texts based on existing artworks for other artists to set to music or use in drama. Afif himself refuses to appear in public, preferring to direct from afar.Valentina Vlasic: Saâdane Afif, in: The Present Order is the Disorder of the Future, Schriftenreihe Museum Kurhaus Kleve – Ewald Mataré-Sammlung Nr. 62, Freundeskreis Museum Kurhaus und Koekkoek-Haus Kleve e.V. (Hrsg), 2013, p. 57.
In 2008, Afif began a project entitled the Fountain Archive. This currently contains about 500 images of
Marcel Duchamp
Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, ; ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, Futurism and conceptual art. He is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Pica ...
’s porcelain urinal. In this project, Afif collects and archives every single publication in which he finds a reproduction of Duchamp's urinal. As a
found object
A found object (a calque from the French ''objet trouvé''), or found art, is art created from undisguised, but often modified, items or products that are not normally considered materials from which art is made, often because they already hav ...
, every page containing a picture of the urinal is torn out and then carefully framed. The frame, used both for its preservative and decorative purposes, is also part of the artistic process. Every step of the archiving process follows meticulous rules which form a part of this artistic process. Each new archived image has its own inventory card, which acts as a certificate of authenticity. Publications which discuss Afif's project (and therefore reproduce images of Duchamp's urinal) are also included in the Fountain Archive project: these, though, are treated as special objects as they constitute a historical echo of the original work. This is the only exception to the generally strict rule that each photograph can only be included in the Fountain Archive once.
In April 2012, an exhibition took place at the Museum für Moderne Kunst in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
. The MMK Zollamt was an exhibition outside the main exhibition space, presenting Saâdane Afif's "Anthologie de l’humour noir". It highlighted some aspects of African influence in a new and unusual light, since this was also connected to modern French art and
literature
Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...
. The centrepiece was a coffin made in
Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
which plays an ode to the deceased. The shape of the coffin is a reference to the
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
and it was titled Humour Noir (a translation of " black humour"). This phrase was made famous by
André Breton
André Robert Breton (; ; 19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first ''Surrealist Manifesto'' (''Manifeste du surréalisme'') ...
.
''Lyrics''
In 2004, as part of his exhibition ''Melancholic Beat'' at the
Museum Folkwang
Museum Folkwang is a major collection of 19th- and 20th-century art in Essen, Germany. The museum was established in 1922 by merging the Essener Kunstmuseum, which was founded in 1906, and the private Folkwang Museum of the collector and patr ...
in
Essen
Essen () is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as ...
, Saâdane Afif requested artist Lili Reynaud-Dewar to write lyrics relatedto the four works exhibited: ''Brume'', ''Everyday'', ''Black Spirit'' and ''Blue Time''. This experience introduced a process that would radically affect his artistic practice. These song commissions follow very precise rules: Afif sends the authors a document in which he tells them about the art piece related to the song (title, form, context of appearance, intentions, sketches). In return, the song will have to keep the same title and a link with the object described. The texts are then presented on the walls, alongside the works to which they refer, imitating the presentation notes that usually punctuate the exhibition itinerary. Their poetic register, however, determined by the commission, consciously distances them from any didactic attention.
Title Lyrics the series now includes more than two hundred texts written by around one hundred people, part of which has been gathered in the book Paroles ' co-published by the WIELS Contemporary Art Centre an Triangle Books in Belgium in 2018. These mutant objects at the crossroads of two imaginations, both emanating from and extending the meaning of a given work, will then become essential material for the artist's work.
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
, Paris, France
* 2017 : ''Performance! The collection of the Centre Pompidou'', Tripostal, Lille, France
* 2017 : ''Oh les Beaux Jours, une esthétique des moyens disponibles'', 9th Biennale of
Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve
Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve (; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. On January 1, 2006, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve had a total population of 29,521. The total area is 32.96 km2 which giv ...
, Belgium
* 2016 : ''Quoi ? - L'Éternité'' Atelier Hermès Seoul, South Korea
* 2016 : ''Vice de Forme: Das Kabarett, SCORES - Musical Works by Visual Artists'', Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin, Germany
* 2016 : ''Mount Moon Takes Monte Carlo'', Nuit Blanche de Monaco, Monaco
* 2016 : ''Parler en langues'', Nuit Blanche Paris, Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris, France
* 2015 : ''Das Ende der Welt'',
Museum für Naturkunde
The Natural History Museum () is a natural history museum located in Berlin, Germany. It exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history and in such domain it is one of three major museums in Germany alongside Naturm ...
, Berlin, Germany
* 2015 : ''Political Populism'', Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna, Austria
* 2015 : ''Her Ghost Friend'', Three Tokyo Sessions, Tokyo Art Meeting VI – "TOKYO" - Sensing the Cultural Magma of the Metropolis, MOT, Tokyo, Japan
* 2015 : ''Threads: Fantasmagoria about Distance'' Kaunas Biennale Lithuania
* 2015 : 6th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia
* 2015 : ''The Laguna’s Tribute, All the World’s Futures,'' 56th International Art Exhibition,
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Venice Biennale of Architecture, Architecture Biennale (), ...
, Venice, Italy
* 2014 : ''Là-bas.'', 8th Berlin Biennale, Berlin, Germany
* 2014 : Là-bas. Kunsthaus Glarus Switzerland
* 2014 : ''Ici.'' Günther-Peill-Stiftung am Leopold-Hoesch-Museum & Papiermuseum Düren Düren, Germany
* 2014 : ''Affiches & Fontaines'', Xavier Hufkens, Brussels, Belgium
* 2014 : ''Blue Times'', Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna, Austria
* 2014 : ''Souvenirs: Leçon de Géométrie, Where are we now?'' 5th Marrakech Biennale Marrakech, Morocco
* 2014 : ''Sept notes sur le travail de Peter Roehr'', Mouse On Mars – 21 AGAIN Festival, Hebbel Am Ufer, Berlin, Germany
* 2013 : ''Blue Time, Blue Time, Blue Time...'' Institut d'Art Contemporain Villeurbanne, France
* 2013 : ''Sept notes sur le travail de Peter Roehr (with Peter Roehr)'' Galerie Mehdi Chouakri Berlin, Germany
* 2013 : ''Mount Moon'', The Basel Tour Liste 18 Basel, Switzerland
* 2013 : ''The Fairytale Recordings'', WWTBD – What Would Thomas Bernhard Do, Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna, Austria
* 2013 : ''The Present Order is the Disorder of the Future'' Museum Kurhaus Kleve Germany
* 2013 : ''Héritages'', Re:emerge-Towards a New Cultural Cartography, 11th Sharjah Biennale, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
* 2012 : ''Anthologie de l’Humour Noir'', Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt, Germany
* 2012 : ''L’S BELLS – The Busker of the Gray Line'' Ludlow 38 New York, United States of America
* 2012 : ''Made in Germany 2: Internationale Kunst in Deutschland,'' Sprengel Museum, Hannover, Germany
* 2012 : ''Art and the City'' Public Space Project Zurich, Switzerland
* 2011 : ''The Fairytale Recordings'' Schinkel Pavillon Berlin, Germany
* 2011 : ''Echoes'' Centre Culturel Suisse Paris, France
* 2011 : ''Melanchotopia'',
Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art Witte (and de Witte) are Dutch language, Dutch and Low German surnames meaning "(the) white one". Witte can also be a patronymic surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Alfred Witte (1878–1941), German astrologer
* Barbara Witte (192 ...
, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
* 2011 : ''Meeting Points 6: Locus Agonistess – Practices and Logics of the Civic'', Argos, Brussels, Belgium
* 2011 : ''Meeting Points 6: Locus Agonistess'' ''– Practices and Logics of the Civic'', Beirut Art Center, Beirut, Lebanono
* 2010 : ''A Lecture, A Recording & Few Witnesses'' OPA Oficina para Proyectos de Arte Guadalajara, Mexico
* 2010 : ''Saâdane Afif – Anthologie de l’Humour Noir'',
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
, Paris, France
* 2010 : ''Morality'',
Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art Witte (and de Witte) are Dutch language, Dutch and Low German surnames meaning "(the) white one". Witte can also be a patronymic surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Alfred Witte (1878–1941), German astrologer
* Barbara Witte (192 ...
, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
* 2010 : ''ACT VII: Of Facts and Fables'',
Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art Witte (and de Witte) are Dutch language, Dutch and Low German surnames meaning "(the) white one". Witte can also be a patronymic surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Alfred Witte (1878–1941), German astrologer
* Barbara Witte (192 ...
, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
* 2010 : ''La Carte d’après Nature. An Artist’s Selection by Thomas Demand'', Villa Paloma, Monaco, Monaco
* 2009 : ''Feedback'', EACC Espai d’Art Contemporani de Castelló, Castelló, Spain
* 2009 : ''Vice de Forme : In Search of Melodies'' Galerie Michel Rein Paris, France
* 2008 : TWO..., FRAC Fonds Régional d'Art Contemporain Basse-Normandie, Caen, France
* 2008 : ONE, FRAC Fonds Régional d'Art Contemporain Pays de la Loire, Carquefou, France
* 2008 : ''Technical Specifications'',
Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art Witte (and de Witte) are Dutch language, Dutch and Low German surnames meaning "(the) white one". Witte can also be a patronymic surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Alfred Witte (1878–1941), German astrologer
* Barbara Witte (192 ...
, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
* 2007 : ''58:22 & Some Words'' Galerie Mehdi Chouakri Berlin, Germany
* 2007 : ''Airs de Paris'',
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
, Paris, France
* 2007 : ''Black Chords'', Documenta 12, Kassel, Germany
* 2006 : ''Power Chords'' Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco Monaco, Monaco
* 2006 : ''La Répétition'', Galleria Maze, Turin, Italy
* 2006 : ''Power Chords'', Cité de la Musique, Paris, France
* 2006 : ''Expats/Clandestines'', Wiels, Brussels, Belgium
* 2005 : ''Lyrics'',
Palais de Tokyo
The Palais de Tokyo (''Tokyo Palace'') is a building dedicated to modern and contemporary art, located at 13 avenue du Président-Wilson, facing the Trocadéro, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The eastern wing of the building belongs to ...
Museum Folkwang
Museum Folkwang is a major collection of 19th- and 20th-century art in Essen, Germany. The museum was established in 1922 by merging the Essener Kunstmuseum, which was founded in 1906, and the private Folkwang Museum of the collector and patr ...
, Essen, Germany
* 2004 : ''Playlist'',
Palais de Tokyo
The Palais de Tokyo (''Tokyo Palace'') is a building dedicated to modern and contemporary art, located at 13 avenue du Président-Wilson, facing the Trocadéro, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The eastern wing of the building belongs to ...
, Paris, France
* 2001 : ''Mise à flot'', Le Creux de l’Enfer, Thiers, France
* 2001 : ''Parallèle Parallaxe Paradoxe'', Maison Populaire, Montreuil, France
Awards and grants
* 2015 : Prix Meurice pour l'art contemporain, Paris, France
* 2012 : Prize o Günther-Peill-Stiftung Düren, Germany
* 2009 :
Marcel Duchamp Prize
The Marcel Duchamp Prize (in French : ''Prix Marcel Duchamp'') is an annual award given to a young artist by the Association pour la Diffusion Internationale de l'Art Français (ADIAF).
The winner receives €35,000 personally and up to €30,000 ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
* 2002 : Award of Villa Medicis Hors les Murs (Residence) in
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
,
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
* 2001 : Scholarship (Residence), Villa Arson, Nice, France
Collections
Saâdane Afif's work can be found in numerous museums and public collections around the world. Selected museum collections include the Paris Museum of Modern Art; the
Centre Pompidou
The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
Vaduz
Vaduz (; or ; High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' ...
; the National Museum of Modern Art of Tokyo, Japan; the Haus Konstruktiv Museum in Zurich, Switzerland; the Museum für Moderne Kunst in Frankfurt am Main, Germany; the MUDAM, Contemporary Art Museum in Luxembourg; and the Institut d'art contemporain in Villeurbanne.
Selected public collections include numerous regional contemporary art funds ("fonds régional d'art contemporain, FRAC"), notably those of the Île-de-France, Poitou-Charentes, Champagne-Ardenne and Pays de la Loire regions, as well as the FRAC Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur; the collection of the Lafayette Anticipations foundation; the Centre national des arts plastiques (CNAP) and the Kadist foundation.
Bibliography
* Eva Huttenlauch: "Everything must be scandalous", in: Saâdane Afif. Another Anthology of Black Humor, published by Susanne Gaensheimer and Eva Huttenlauch, Verlag für Moderne Kunst, Nürnberg 2012.
* Elena Filipovic, Xavier Hufkens: Sâadane Afif. Fontaines. Triangle Books, 2014, .
* Valentina Vlasic: Saâdane Afif, in: The Present Order is the Disorder of the Future, Schriftenreihe Museum Kurhaus Kleve – Ewald Mataré-Sammlung Nr. 62, Freundeskreis Museum Kurhaus und Koekkoek-Haus Kleve e.V. (Hrsg), 2013, p. 57.