146. JESSE DARLING: A SPACE BETWEEN ON AND OFF.
Jesse Darling, Les Ambassadeurs, Palais de Tokyo - PARIS.
Jesse Darling, Les Ambassadeurs, Palais de Tokyo. Image: M-A (A SPACE BETWEEN).
‘As each fan switches on and off, in action or inaction - the effects of each plinth's silhouette is transformed - performing one of two roles: Caped or swathed - superhero or priest - as to be saved or to be shrouded.
The effect en masse is both hypnotising and bewildering, as to view a swimmer from a distance, unsure if they are waving or drowning.’ M-A
As Paris burns in an unprecedented heatwave - and the prospect of even higher temperatures due in the coming weeks, there is a definite sense of threat to the city's nonchalant normality.
To chance upon Jesse Darling's fantastical 'Les Ambassadeurs', at Palais de Tokyo, seems an irresistible proposition of action in response to the effects of our collective climate crisis. The installation both soothes with immediacy and exposes a chilling warning, implied and within plain sight.
A conclave of caged electric fans, each affixed to a white-washed lectern - flutter with faded flags - horizontal as a windsock when unfurled, draped vertically when not, momentary stilled before each fan is activated.
The gentle hum is heard from this choir of motors, undulating in tone as to exhale and inhale, as a bodily rhythm of breath, restless and exhausted.
As each fan switches on and off, in action or inaction - the effects of each plinth's silhouette is transformed - performing one of two roles: Caped or swathed - superhero or priest - as to be saved or to be shrouded.
The effect en masse is both hypnotising and bewildering, as to view a swimmer from a distance, unsure if they are waving or drowning.
Electrical cables stream the floor, as dilated veins on the surface of skin, a natural reaction to lose heat and maintain a constant body temperature - a natural aim for equilibrium.
Jesse Darling, Les Ambassadeurs, Palais de Tokyo. Image: M-A (A SPACE BETWEEN).
The artist's choice of white fascinates, a texture akin to the milky wash or 'Blanc de Meudon' which the French have used to combat the recent heatwave - painting window panes to reflect sunlight and heat. A DIY solution made of chalk and water, which dries matte white. Within current conditions, both electric fans and chalk are currently in short supply and high demand - supporting Darling's reactive use of media - luxuriate in quantity within this presentation - adding to the notion of changing value and values within the artist's act of provocation.
Each flag, indistinguishable from the next, duly suggests unity and also confusion. To imagine a meeting of nations where every speech and action is the same.
The textile markings are reminiscent of the block colours used within the vestments created by Henri Matisse for the Vence Chapel, which the artist also decorated the interior, drawing across walls of domestic white tiles. Darling also proposes humble materials with thoughtful precision, evoking a unified, experiential installation which evokes a meditative pause within the familial domestic components of daily life.
As with Dan Flavin's work using fluorescent lighting equipment, proposing what cannot be seen as much as what can, so too does Darling explore the 'implied'. And it is here that the artist's use of the notion of inaction feels most provoking. The placid sense of choice - in switching the fan on and off is accepted as beyond the viewer's control, <not my department, not my problem>, and yet collectively, the effect of this active sense of benign responsibility adds to the unspoken, yet implied challenge - a call to action - as authority - as government, as religion. To wait for a decision to be made on how to act, how to behave and the assumption, the hope, the prayer of being saved.
Jesse Darling, Les Ambassadeurs, Palais de Tokyo. Image: M-A (A SPACE BETWEEN).
Jesse Darling Les Ambassadeurs Palais de Tokyo, Paris. Until 13 September 2026.