A New Identity

The art exhibitions at Friedman & Vallois have always held my interest. So imagine how pleased I was to learn that the gallery, best known for their exquisite art deco furnishings, were getting ready to showcase an exclusive major art exhibition of French artist Rachid Khimoune starting next week Thursday, November 8th until the 21st of December. This is a big deal because the last time Khimoune was in the big apple showcasing his work, the year was 1986, when the New York City harbor celebrated a selection of French artists on the occasion of the centennial of the Statue of Liberty.

Rachid Khimoune is a self proclaimed “assembler”. His art work is so entrenched in the history of tribal art, that at first glance, one will think it has been around for decades on end. He deftly uses materials which he qualifies as being miscegenation, a melding of a sort. With the use of manhole, he keeps on reminding his fans and critics of the poetic license of every single human expression, similarly the discarded wall outlet, or other salvage material are offered a new life from their insignificance. The materials that he uses mirror and embody the philosophy that the minority can have a positive influence in the majority. His recylced materials look and feel like the real thing. His work further suggests that knowing oneself, there’s no more room for fear. And so by working with these items, Rachid has truly found his true identity.

On the occasion of this exhibition, Rachid Khimoune will be presenting a recent series of totems, masks, and tortoises. He expressed this dramatically in June 6, 2011, when he installed a thousand tortoises on Omaha Beah, commemorating the landing of Allies in France marking the beginning of the conclusion War War II.