Book publication / Book review
"Retourner le monde. Arts, Anthropologies, Ressemblances" by Octave Debary
Many years ago I met the French anthropologist Octave Debary during an artist residency on the Swedish island
#FÄrö. We spent a lot of time together and stayed in touch even after the residency was over. Octave once came to Hamburg to interview me for several days, wrote an essay about my performances on
#waste and has continued to reflect on my work ever since. I am featured again in his latest book "Retourner le monde. Arts, Anthropologies, Ressemblances" which has just been published. It has been such a wonderful ride and as a little icing on the cake the book has just been reviewed in Le Monde.
On the book:
Octave Debaryâs "Retourner le monde" explores how memory and history take shape through what societies preserve, forget, or discard. Blending anthropology, contemporary art, and personal reflection, Debary shows that remnantsâwaste, neglected objects, overlooked materialsâcan become powerful carriers of memory. Through encounters with artists such as Swaantje GĂŒntzel, Jochen Gerz, Christian Boltanski, and Samuel Roy-Bois, as well as thinkers like Philippe Descola, Howard S. Becker, Pierre Nora, and Christian Bobin, Debary examines how different voices attempt to âturn the world aroundâ to see it differently and approach it more closely. The book highlights the tension between the passing of time and the persistence of what refuses to disappear. Art becomes a space where traces of the past can re-emerge and where forgotten or marginal remains regain meaning. Concise and reflective, "Retourner le monde" offers a thoughtful meditation on memory, loss, and the subtle ways in which the past continues to shape the present.
Octave Debary: Retourner le monde. Arts, Anthropologies, Ressemblances
ISBN : 978-2-35428-220-2
#octavedebary #anthropology #retournerlemonde #art #conceptualart #performance #lemonde #artistresidency #bookreview #bookrelease