Portraits of cities

Musee Marlaux, Le Havre, France

From June 2 to September 16, 2007

Exposure of photographic works and vidéos by contemporary artists.
Beyond a historical panorama, the objective is to propose a plural, but certainly compartmental vision of these cities, through the glance of photographers Brazilian, Indian, French, and Spanish.

On July 15, 2005, the office of the Inheritance of UNESCO decided the inscription unanimously, with the world Inheritance of Humanity, the downtown area of Le Havre rebuilt by Auguste Perret.
Since then, the City of Le Havre engaged an action plan aiming at developing this label.

Brasilia, Chandigarh, Le Havre… three large cities of the 20th century, built by three major architects, Oscar Niemeyer (and Lucio Costa), Corbusier (and Pierre Jeanneret, Maxwell Fry, Jane Drew) and Auguste Perret (and his workshop), on three different continents, South America, Asia, Europe.

Their common point: monumental building sites, reflections of the major convictions their originators, driving at cities recognized today like major works of the world history of architecture and town planning (Le Havre and Brasilia classified with the world Inheritance of Humanity by UNESCO and Chandigarh about to be it).

They were also all three photographed, between 1955 and 1961, by one of the best “interpreters” of architecture, Lucien Herve, whose images contributed in a way essential to reveal, in Europe, the aspect of the new capitals of Brazil and Western Panjab.

Introduced Artists::
Lucien Herve, Diwan Manna, Louidgi Beltrame, emmanuelle White, Jordi Colomer, Stephan Couturier, George Dupin, Veronique Elléna, Arthur Monteiro, Emmanuel Plonk, Caio Reisewitz, Nancy Wilson Pajic.

Exhibition carried out by the City of Le Havre with the support of the National Center of the Visual arts - Ministry for the Culture and the Communication for the public order.

Catalogue by the Somogy editions.

An international conference will be organized within this framework on Thursday 13 - Friday 14 September 2007, around the topic “Brasilia - Chandigarh - Le Havre - Tel Aviv. Four symbolic cities of the 20th century”.

Inauguration of the exhibition, Brasilia-Chandigarh-Le Havre, at Musee Malraux, Le Havre, France, June 2, 2007. Annette Haudiquet, Director Musee Malraux, Le Havre (extreme right) (Diwan Manna Photographs of Chandigarh in the backdrop)

Viewers looking at Diwan Manna Photographs of Chandigarh in the exhibition Brasilia-Chandigarh-Le Havre, at Musee Malraux, Le Havre, France June 2, 2007 

Viewers looking at Diwan Manna and Stephane Couturier Photographs of Chandigarh in the exhibition Brasilia-Chandigarh-Le Havre, at Musee Malraux, Le Havre, France June 2, 2007

Viewers in front of Diwan Manna Photographs of Chandigarh in the exhibition Brasilia-Chandigarh-Le Havre, at Musee Malraux, Le Havre, France June 2, 2007

* Photographs of the exhibition courtesy Musee Malraux, Le Havre