I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea.
A plinth for the future.
The essence of Charbel-joseph H. Boutros’ practice is sculpting invisibility and treating it as a material. In his work, invisibility subtly weaves intimate, geographical, and political narratives, re-questioning the role of an overtly engaged artist and finding poetic lines extending beyond the realm of existing speculations and realities. For H. Boutros, each exhibition is a new geography that reformulates reality.
Um plinto para o futuro.
A essência da prática de Charbel-joseph H. Boutros reside em esculpir a invisibilidade, tratando-a como algo material. Na sua obra, a invisibilidade tece de maneira subtil narrativas íntimas, geográficas e políticas, permitindo-lhe reequacionar o papel do artista manifestamente comprometido e levando-o, antes, a percorrer trilhos poéticos que se estendem para além do especulativo e das realidades existentes. Para H. Boutros, cada exposição é uma nova geografia que reformula a realidade.
Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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At Galeria Vera Cortes, H. Boutros constructs an exhibition looking at itself. The exhibition is comprised of two independent bodies; the first is composed of a new production, that projects towards a speculative future, the end of art; the second, conceived as a portrait is a dense constellation of the artist’s older body of work.
By intentionally confronting what exists to the future, H. Boutros uses his previous works as a material to unfurl new narratives, charging them with new meanings, thus becoming a sort of relics that make premonitory dreams; a plinth for the future.
Na Galeria Vera Cortês, o artista apresenta uma exposição que se olha a si mesma. Esta é constituída por dois corpos independentes: o primeiro é composto por nova produção e aponta para um futuro especulativo, para o fim da arte; o segundo, pensado como um retrato, é uma constelação densa de trabalhos anteriores do artista.
Ao confrontar o que existe e aquilo que é futuro, H. Boutros utiliza as suas obras anteriores para compor novas narrativas, com novos significados, transformando-as numa espécie de relíquia que gera sonhos premonitórios; um plinto para o futuro.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, A Waxed Melody, the last art exhibition in history, 2023. Electric guitar, votive candle wax, wishes, hopes, carpet, desert sand, video (28min.), exhibition. Unique
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In his new production, entitled A Waxed Melody, the last art exhibition in history, we see a levitating phantomatic waxed guitar which is facing a video shot in the dark of a concert that took place at La Criée centre for contemporary art in France. The video begins with this sentence: “One day in the future, will take place the last art exhibition. Charbel-joseph H. Boutros invites the musician Charbel Haber to compose a tribute concert for this last exhibition to come”.
Na nova obra “A Waxed Melody, the last art exhibition in history”, uma guitarra coberta de cera levita como se fosse um fantasma virado para o ecrã onde vemos o vídeo de um concerto filmado às escuras e que teve lugar no centro de arte contemporânea La Criée (Rennes, França) e que começa com a seguinte frase: “Um dia no futuro, terá lugar a última exposição de arte do mundo. Charbel-joseph H. Boutros convida Charbel Haber para compor um concerto de homenagem a esta exposição por vir”.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, A Waxed Melody, the last art exhibition in history, 2023 (detail). Electric guitar, votive candle wax, wishes, hopes, carpet, desert sand, video (28min.), exhibition. Unique
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, A Waxed Melody, the last art exhibition in history, 2023 (detail). Electric guitar, votive candle wax, wishes, hopes, carpet, desert sand, video (28min.), exhibition. Unique
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Video excerpt from A Waxed Melody.
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In this exhibition, Charbel-joseph H. Boutros invites us to delve into a geographic entity in which private stories are interwoven with those of art, place and the course of history, and the components of reality with the alchemy of dreams.
Nesta exposição, Charbel-joseph H. Boutros convida-nos a mergulhar numa nova entidade geográfica – na qual se baralham histórias pessoais, de arte, de lugares, sobre o curso da história, e onde se combinam os componentes da realidade com a alquimia dos sonhos.
Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Two new shoes from the same pair are separated. The left one was worn by the artist during his trips in Europe for six months. The right one was worn by his friend in Beirut. The two shoes are reunited for the exhibition.
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Dois ténis novos de um mesmo par foram separados. O par esquerdo foi usado pelo artista durante seis meses nas suas viagens pela Europa. O par direito foi calçado por um amigo em Beirute. O dois ténis são reunidos nesta exposição.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Amitié, 2018. Stan Smith shoes. 40 x 52 x 11 cm. Unique
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Divine, 2019-2023 (detail). Engraved marble slab, gallerist’s T-shirt (Vera Cortês), hopes, labor. 54 x 59 x 2 cm. Unique (in a series)
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Divine, 2019-2023. Engraved marble slab, gallerist’s T-shirt (Vera Cortês), hopes, labor. 54 x 59 x 2 cm. Unique (in a series)
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Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Night Enclosed in Marble, 2012-23. Carrara marble, 1cm3 of night from a forest in Mount Lebanon, metallic hinges. Unique in an ongoing series.
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O bloco de mármore abre-se como um livro. Em cada uma das suas faces maciças interiores esculpiu-se 0,5 cm3 de vazio. Quando fechado contém 1 cm3 de vazio no seu centro de gravidade. O bloco foi transportado pelo artista numa noite sem lua pelo interior de uma floresta. O bloco de mármore branco foi aberto e a noite infiltrou-se nele. De seguida, o bloco foi fechado, encerrando 1 cm3 desta noite particular. O artista faz uma colecção de noites, cada caixa contendo uma noite específica proveniente de uma certa geografia.
The marble block opens like a book. In each of its interior massive parts, 0.5 cm3 of void was carved. When closed it contains 1 cm3 of void at its center of gravity. The block was transported by the artist, on a night without a moon, inside a forest. The white marble block was opened, and night infiltrated it. The block was then closed, enclosing 1cm3 of this specific night. A collection of nights is being made by the artist, each box containing a specific night from a certain geography.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Life Variation #4, 2011. Passion-fruit, electric charger. Variable dimensions. Unique
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Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Blanket used for one night, then burned in a slow and delicate manner, transforming it into a round-shaped territory, or into a hole to capture dreams.
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Cobertor usado durante uma noite, depois queimado lenta e delicadamente conferindo-lhe a forma de um território arredondado, ou de um buraco para atrair sonhos.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Night Cartography #2, 2017. Blanket, dreams, fire. Variable dimensions. Unique
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Untitled Until Now, 2019. Neon light (equal to the lenght of a person, before being heated and twisted), votive candle wax, light, heat. 185 cm. Unique (in a series)
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Untitled Until Now, 2019 (detail). Neon light (equal to the lenght of a person, before being heated and twisted), votive candle wax, light, heat. 185 cm. Unique (in a series)
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Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Life variation #3, the marbles, the ring and the continents. Greece, 2022. Marble stone coming from Greece, pieces of a golden ring, continents, metallic structure, displacement, love, hopes. 170 x 106 x 64 cm. Unique
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Life variation #3, the marbles, the ring and the continents. Greece, 2022 (detai. Marble stone coming from Greece, pieces of a golden ring, continents, metallic structure, displacement, love, hopes. 170 x 106 x 64 cm. Unique
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An intimate object, a gold ring has been cut into five parts that have been placed on five large marble stones, each of these coming from different geographies, five places where the artist lived. This stone monument is transient; as soon as the exhibition ends, it will travel to a different place, taking with it the golden fragments of a ring and a love.
Um objecto íntimo, um anel de ouro, foi cortado em cinco partes depois colocadas em cinco grandes pedras de mármore provenientes de diferentes geografias, cinco lugares onde o artista viveu. Este monumento de pedra é transiente; assim que a exposição terminar, viajará para um lugar diferente, levando consigo os fragmentos dourados de um anel e de um amor.
Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Under the Shadow of your Fingers, 2019-2023. Video (7 min.), laptop, metallic structure. 54 x 59 x 2 cm. Ed 5 + 2 AP
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Video excerpt from Under the Shadow of your Fingers.
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A video shows the hands of a woman typing on a laptop. This shows the hands of the artist’s partner, re-typing seven years later the first love email she ever sent to him.
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O vídeo mostra as mãos de uma mulher a escrever num computador enquanto dactilografa a primeira carta de amor enviada por email ao seu amante sete anos antes.
Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Night Cartography #03, 2016-19. Airplane sleeping mask, votive candle wax, dreams, wishes. Variable dimensions. Unique (ongoing series)
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Wax from votive candles (stolen from a church in the Lebanese mountains) is poured on an airplane sleeping mask, used by the artist at night for several months.
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Cera de velas votivas de uma igreja nas montanhas do Líbano, derramada sobre uma máscara de avião para dormir utilizada durante várias noites ao longo de vários meses.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Mon Amour, 2012-17 (detail). Supermarket receipts, marker. 70 x 50 cm. Unique (series)
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Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, Mon Amour, 2012-17. Supermarket receipts, marker. 70 x 50 cm. Unique (series)
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Supermarket goods are passed through the checkout so the cash machine prints out a receipt of which the first letters of each line form the acrostic spelling “mon amour.”
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Produtos de supermercado passados pela caixa por uma determinada ordem, de modo a que o talão impresso forma um acróstico onde se lê a palavra “mon amour” (meu amor).
Exhibition view: Charbel-joseph H. Boutros, I stood in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar and I dropped my left tear in the Atlantic Ocean and my right tear in the Mediterranean Sea., Galeria Vera Cortês, 2023
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// Bio
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros was born in Lebanon in 1981 and lives and works between Beirut and Paris.
In his work invisibility is charged with intimate, geographical and historical layers; finding poetic lines that extend beyond the realm of existing speculations and realities. Being born in the middle of the Lebanese war, his art is not engaged in an explicit political and historical reflection, but is more accurately haunted by the said political and historical reflection.
For H. Boutros, each exhibition is a new geography that reformulates reality.
H. Boutros was a resident at Le Pavillon, Palais de Tokyo, Paris (France) and a researcher at Jan van Eyck Academie, Maastricht (The Netherlands). In 2020, the S.M.A.K. Museum in Ghent (Belgium) hosted his first institutional exhibition in Europe, “The Sun Is My Only Ally”, later presented at the contemporary art center La Criée (2022). His first monograph, jointly prepared by S.M.A.K Ghent and La Criée centre for contemporary art, published by Mousse Publishing was released in 2022.
His work has been shown internationally at: The 12th International Istanbul Biennial, Istanbul, Turkey; Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France; Punta della Dogana, Venice, Italy; Centre Pompidou – Metz, France; S.M.A.K. Museum, Gent, Belgium; Home Works 8, Ashkal Alwan, Beirut; CCS Bard College, New York, USA; 3rd Bahia Biennial, Salvador, Brazil; 1st Yinchuan Biennale, Yinchuan, China; CCA, Warsaw, Poland; Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, UAE; Beirut Art Center, Beirut, Lebanon; La Criée Centre for Contemporary Art, France; Marres, Maastricht, The Netherlands. A permanent installation ‘Sueur d’étoile’, that he realized with the French étoile dancer Marie-Agnes Gillot, inaugurated in 2016 remains on view at Palais de Tokyo, Paris (France).
His works are in the collections of S.M.A.K. Museum, Gent; CNAP, Paris, France; Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, UAE.
Charbel-joseph H. Boutros nasceu no Líbano em 1981 e vive e trabalha entre Beirute e Paris.
Na sua obra, a invisibilidade reveste-se de camadas íntimas, geográficas e históricas, encontrando linhas poéticas que se estendem além do domínio das especulações e realidades existentes. Tendo nascido durante a guerra do Líbano, o seu trabalho não assenta sobre uma reflexão histórica e política explícita, mas antes sobre o assombramento desta eventual reflexão histórica e política.
Para H. Boutros, cada exposição é uma nova geografia que reformula a realidade.
H. Boutros foi artista residente no The Pavillon do Palais de Tokyo, Paris (França) e investigador na Jan van Eyck Academie, Maastricht (Países Baixos). O museu S.M.A.K. Museum em Ghent (Bélgica), acolheu em 2020 a sua primeira grande exposição institucional na Europa, “The Sun Is My Only Ally”, de seguida apresentada no centro de arte contemporânea La Criée. Em 2022, em conjunto com estas duas instituições, o seu primeiro livro monográfico foi publicado pela Mousse Publishing.
O seu trabalho tem sido apresentado internacionalmente em: 12ª Bienal Internacional de Istambul, Istambul, Turquia; Palais de Tokyo, Paris, França; Punta della Dogana, Veneza, Itália; Centre Pompidou – Metz, França; S.M.A.K. Museum, Gent, Bélgica; Home Works 8, Ashkal Alwan, Beirute; CCS Bard College, Nova Iorque, EUA; 3ª Bienal da Bahia, Salvador, Brasil; 1ª Bienal Yinchuan, Yinchuan, China; CCA, Varsóvia, Polónia; Barjeel Art Foundation, Sharjah, EAU; Beirut Art Center, Beirut, Líbano; La Criée Centre d’art contemporain, Rennes, França; Marres, Maastricht, Países Baixos. A instalação permanente ‘Sueur d’étoile’, que realizou junto com a bailarina francesa Marie-Agnes Gillot, inaugurada em 2016, continua exposta no Palais de Tokyo, Paris (França).
As suas obras encontram-se nas colecções do Museu S.M.A.K., Gent; CNAP, Paris, França; Fundação de Arte Barjeel, Sharjah, EAU.
