Scenography in Lycée Marie Curie :

http://gallery.me.com/groussontroye...

Europ’art puzzle meeting :

http://gallery.me.com/groussontroye...

Graphic art month :

http://gallery.me.com/groussontroye...

Graphic Art Month in Echirolles 21st November 2008 – 31st January 2009

Exhibitions

We love books ! – A world tour “Oh Typography” (« O typo ») K&D, video artists

Sporting Characters

Kvĕta Pacovskà, alphabets and books for young people

Teaching-design : letter to a friend

Artists’ books

Justin Grégoire, bringing words to life

A Word from Local Inhabitants

Life’s Rubbish

Diego Zaccaria General Delegate for the Graphic Arts Centre

"Voltaire once said that writing is painting with words. Plato suspected that it froze speech and therefore thought. Burdened with this original suspicion, writing is nonetheless indispensable to our social interactions, which have become more complex as society has evolved and economic and trading exchanges have developed. It is built not in opposition to but in parallel with the human memory, pushing the limits, producing information that is understandable and shared by all, initially useful in preserving oral information, and then in reproducing the spoken word.

In its function as communication, writing is an act of translation. A test, as Paul Ricoeur says, that makes the translator’s role as mediator an uncomfortable one. Thought, then, the message to be translated into signs that resist the written form, that resist a synthesis of the image. The choice is decisive for the visual translator, torn between the resistance of the thought, a message that is reluctant to become frozen, and the resistance of the reader, the viewer who reads or understands the image according to his own social and cultural code. So it is that writing is a mark, a trace, that is vital in understanding the world and its motion, from the time of the pre-historic hunter who tried to make out the animal’s movements by the tracks left in the soil, right up to modern man who takes in information in multiple forms.

How can the energy of thought, the expressivity of the spoken word best be rendered ? Contemporary graphic designers have harnessed themselves to the precept rather than to the question, broadening the path forged by the poets (Mallarmé, Apollinaire, Marinetti…), drawing on the quest by avant-garde artists throughout the 20th century. Working in their turn, typographers have tried to restore a “voice” to the frozen word by redesigning the contours of letters, slimming down and swelling out their bodies, giving them a bit of boldness to help them find the right “tone”. Along with the “image-makers”, they start to form a sort of grammar, a vocabulary in perpetual effervescence, given impetus by the rhythms and necessities of social life."

Exhibition “We love books – a world tour”, An international panorama of contemporary publishing.

The exhibition “We love Books ! - A World Tour” sheds new light on contemporary publishing around the world. Unexpected, surprising, always inventive, colourful, these books, exhibited at Moulins de Villancourt, illustrate different forms of written and visual expression around the world, representing a vast cultural diversity :
  “Books of the World” – more than 100 graphic artists from Asia, the Central and South Pacific, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, North and Latin America offer us books that are both unexpected and inventive. They invite us to their studios, bookshops, libraries and literary cafés in their town or country. From New Zealand to Norway, Japan to Peru, Egypt to Canada and the Netherlands to Argentina, they accompany us on a veritable world tour of books ;
  “Madame Bovary Around the World” (« Universelle Madame Bovary ») – the famous novel by Flaubert has been published throughout the world. Each book cover, with its images and script, invites you to go on journey ;
  At the Géo-Charles Gallery you will find :
  “New York Art Directors” (« Directeurs Artistiques à New York »)- four of the leading directors in the USA share their experiences as graphic artists or artistic directors at publishing houses such as Random House, Alfred A. Knopf, Vintage and Anchor Books ;
  “Graphic Artists in Taiwan” (« Graphistes à Taiwan ») – six young graphic artists from Taiwan display their books, flyers, and posters which often have a “pop art” feel. They offer us an image that far removed from the cliché of this island which the Portuguese, it’s discoverers, named “Formosa”, the “Beautiful One” ;
  “Books in Cambodia” (« Livres au Cambodge ») - illustrated, colourful, vernacular, often naive, the book covers for novels published in khmer (the Cambodian alphabet) are surprising. They express the popular art that is to be found on the streets of Phnom Penh ;
  “Madagascar” – in this multicultural island for a long time ignored, paper is rare and recycled. And yet they publish newspapers, public health manuals, graphic novels and novels.

These various installations pay homage to contemporary graphic art."

Exhibition “Oh Typography” (« Ô typo »)

The world of Philippe Apeloig through posters, publications and animated alphabets.

Philippe Apeloig was born in 1962 in Paris and studied applied arts at Duperré School and at the National College of Decorative Arts. He discovered typography, which was to become his point of reference after being trained as a calligrapher by Roger Druet, during two internships at Total Design (Amsterdam) in 1983 and 1985. He was then recruited by the Musée d’Orsay as graphic artist before jetting off to Los Angeles in 1988, where he spent a year with April Greiman. Back in Paris, he opened his own studio and worked for a number of cultural institutions, not without a few forays into publishing as Director of Jardin des Modes. In 1993, he was appointed Artistic Director at the Louvre. In parallel with this busy creative life, Philippe Apeloig has taught at ENSA in Paris and at the Copper Union School of Art in New York.

The exhibition presents work completed over some twenty years by Philippe Apeloig. It enables us to share in his passion for letters, considered “not just as a vehicle for thought but also as creative matter” (1) Far from flashy fashionable effects, his aim is to produce work that stands the test of time and enters the collective visual memory.

(1) Philippe Apeloig Au cœur du mot, Editions Lars Muller, Baden, Suisse, 2000

at La Rampe Avenue du 8 mai 1945, Echirolles 04 76 40 83 00 Every day, 1.30 pm to 6.30 pm

Organiser : Diego Zaccaria Design : Philippe Veyrunes

Exhibition “K&D, video artists” (« K&D, génériques de films ») As the collective “Kuntzel+Deygas”, Olivier Kuntzel and Florence Deygas have created a number of works since 1988, mixing video, graphics and character creation. Olivier Kuntzel is a graduate of the Olivier-de-Serres school of applied arts, advertising section. Florence Deygas trained as designer/director of animated films, at the Gobelins Cinema School. K&D have directed unusual and striking videos for Saint-Germain, Bertrand Burgalat and Dimitri from Paris, shorts and adverts for Coca Cola Japan, Nokia and Toyota, and the famous credits sequence for the Spielberg film “Catch Me If You Can”. They have developed a collaborative style of writing whilst at the same time continuing to carry out personal projects particularly in the field of design.

This exhibition presents a selection of their work and you will be able to discover or rediscover their trademark characters Caperino & Peperone, Winney, Com-Pets – now adopted by the worlds of fashion and luxury.

At Lycée Marie-Curie Avenue du 8 mai 1945, Echirolles Tel.0476337000 Monday to Friday, 8 am to 12 noon and 1.30pm to 5.30pm Saturday, 8am to 12 noon

A partnership between Graphic Arts Centre, the Gobelins Cinema School and Lycee Marie-Curie Echirolles

Coordination : Hervé Tissot Layout & Design : M.A.D. and the pupils of Lycee Marie-Curie

Exhibition “Sporting Characters” (« Caractères sportifs ») The Beijing Olympics have been the major sporting, political, cultural and media event of the year. Characters used by the Chinese sporting world enable us to learn about some of the essential aspects of Chinese civilisation, in particular the connections between their writing and physical and sporting practices. Just as the Chinese script is defined and described in terms of the body - flesh, bones, blood, skeleton, muscles, tendons and flesh -sports are deemed in China to prolong life and are considered character-building activities. Thirty posters, created by Chinese graphic artists, illustrate this point. They were selected following a National competition organised by the Shenzhen association of graphic artists. Each poster is accompanied by a description, giving the explanations necessary for understanding the historic, semiological and social implications of the graphic artist’s intentions. Further panels present the mechanics of Chinese script.

Organisers : Thierry Sarfis and Han Jiaying Words by Yolaine Escande Documents : Olivier Cabon. Layout & Design : M.A.D.

Gymnase Lionel Terray Avenue du 8 Mai 1945, Echirolles During Centre opening hours

Exhibition “Kvéta Pacovska, alphabets and books for young people” (« Alphabets et livres jeunesse »)

Discovering the world of the artist and her work through her alphabet books.

The exhibition presents a selection of posters and books for young people illustrated by Kvéta Pacovska. Kvéta Pacovska was born in Prague in 1928 and graduated from the Prague Academy of Applied Arts in 1952. She works in the areas of graphic art, painting, conceptual art and young people’s books. Over seventy exhibitions have been dedicated to her since 1961, when she started to develop her three dimensional illustrated books. Her books have been translated into a dozen different languages, including Chinese. She is a worthy inheritor of the great Czech school of art and her creations express the fusion that is possible between the plastic arts, graphic art and typography.

La maison des Ecrits offers workshops for students. Meeting the artist will take place 20th and 21st January 2009 (by reservation)

At La maison des Ecrits 6 rue du Rhin, Echirolles Tel. 04 76 09 75 20 Coordination : Valérie Zulian Layout & Design : M.A.D.

A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre and La maison des Ecrits

Exhibition “Teaching-design.com : Letter to a friend” (« Teaching-design.com : lettre à un ami ») A graphical encounter between undergraduates and European High School students via the internet site teaching-design.com

The “Teaching-design.com : Letter to a friend” exhibition explores the various modes and forms of writing including national specialities of the five participating delegations : Spain, Estonia, France, Lithuania, the Czech Republic. The French version of the letter is presented in the form of a video. This work has been carried out in the context of the European Coménius project.

At La Maison d’Architecture 4 place de Berulle, Grenoble 04 76 54 29 97 From Monday to Friday, 1.30pm to 6pm

Project Coordination : Geneviève Grousson-Troyes (Lycée Marie-Curie) Layout & Design : the pupils of Lycée Marie-Curie

A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre, the Grenoble maison d’Architecture and Lycee Marie-Curie in Echirolles

Exhibition “Artists’ Books” (« Livres d’artistes ») The literary and artistic treasures of Echirolles

Books are a treasure trove. The writer’s imagination, style and words lead us to the unknown shores to encounter sensitivity, poetry, or more prosaically, social reality. But when the text is entrusted to a typographical, illustrative, engraving or calligraphic artist, the book in its finished form becomes a treasure in and of itself, a real artist’s book. The Echirolles libraries treasures are opened up for the first time to the gaze of local residents and lovers of beautiful work.

At Pablo-Neruda Library 15 place Beaumarchais, Echirolles 04 76 20 64 51 At La Ponatière Library 6 bis avenue Paul Vaillant-Couturier, Echirolles 04 76 40 10 48 During library opening hours

Coordination : Martine Cribier Layout & Design : M.A.D.

A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre, and the Echirolles libraries

Exhibition “Justin Grégoire, bringing words to life” (« Justin Grégoire, l’homme et les animots ») A likeable, playful artist with an eye for the meaning of signs.

An explorer of all forms of graphic expression, Justin Grégoire can wield a pair of scissors faster than a paint brush. He is a master of the art of cutting out silhouettes, rearranging words as images and of creating “animots”, and paper cut-outs have become his favourite technique. After the retrospective exhibition that was dedicated to him in 2006, his “animots” are presented in the town centre and can be used as an educational resource.

At the Anne-Frank social centre 1 rue de Lorraine, Echirolles 04 76 40 20 51 During Social Centre opening hours

Selection : Geneviève Alonso Layout & Design : M.A.D. A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre and the Anne Frank Social Centre, Echirolles.

Exhibition “A Word from Local Inhabitants” (« Paroles d’habitants ») Posters and work from the past three years by the inhabitants of Echirolles.

The exhibition “A Word from Local Inhabitants”, presents the three sections of work carried out by the plastic and graphic artists Marina Siakowski and Anne-Leila Ollivier based on a collection of quotations from the town’s inhabitants. A book (Insolant’Image) has been published for the occasion, bringing together the three bodies of work. This project was carried out in the framework of the urban social cohesion contract and was supported by a grant from the town council.

at Société dauphinoise d’habitat 34 avenue de Grugliasco, Echirolles 04 76 68 39 39 Monday to Friday, 8.30 am to 12 noon and 1.30pm to 5pm Project headed up by Insolant’Image

A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre, and the town of Echirolles

Exhibition “Life’s Rubbish” (« Poubelle la vie ») A pictorial study of problems related to pollution. The “Life’s Rubbish” exhibition presents work by students at Lycée Thomas Edison, assisted by the artist Jean-Noel Zanetti and the teachers at the Lycée on the theme of pollution and natural threats. A collective awareness-raising presentation where each participant has got involved with energy and talent. This project benefited from a grant from Echirolles town council

At the Hôtel de la Ville 1 place des cinq fontaines, Echirolles 04 76 20 63 00 Monday to Friday, 8 am to 12 noon and 1pm to 5.30pm Project by Jean-Noel Zanetti, with the teachers from Lycée Thomas Edison

A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre, Lycée Thomas Edison and Echirolles town council

Cinema : Film Credits

Film Credits appeared at the beginning of cinematography when it was invented by George Meliès. He used black card to write his name and the title, with the aim of differentiating artistic films and films for entertainment from the early scientific films. The story started after the opening credits, at the start which fulfilled a formal purpose (Title, participants…) and finished with a card saying “The End”. Gradually, however, filmmakers broke the rules in order to bring the draw more into the work. Saul Bass revolutionised film credits in 1955, to create a real introduction to the film, getting the spectator in the mood. He invented modern credits in the film “The Man with the Golden Arm” This would not have been possible without the support of directors such as Preminger and Hitchcock, who understood the role credits played, similar to an overture at the Opera. Other designers followed suit, like Binder and Ferro. By the end of the seventies, the first “motion design” companies appeared. In 1995, Kyle Cooper shook up the world of credits with the closing credits to “Se7en”. Today, compositing 3D software and offer new possibilities and credits are becoming more and more spectacular. But good credits remain a sequence linking an intellectual subject with well chosen graphic, typographic and musical compositions. Sometimes the opening credits prove better than the film that follows. These are jewels of graphic art and of the cinema (which the French like to call the “Seventh Art”)

Projections at the Pathé Cinema Echirolles

Showings for all ages Sunday 23rd November at 10 am. Thursday 11th December at 10 pm

Student Showings Thursday 11th December at 9 am and 2pm

Chosen by Laure Chapalain A partnership between the Graphic Arts Centre and the Pathé Cinema, Echirolles