François Pinault, the majority shareholder of Christie’s proudly announces the first two artists to take up residencies in Lens, France. The artists are Melissa Dubbin and Aaron S. Davidson, who are US nationals and have worked together before across various media.
According to plan, the artists will move to Lens next autumn and stay for a year. However, what happens to the resultant works of art is unclear at this point in time. Each year resident artists will be selected by representatives of four different organisations. One is the Pinault collection. The other is Le Fresnoy, the third the Frac Nord-Pas de Calais and lastly the Louvre-Lens.
The artist residency
Pinault, who bought the old rectory in Lens, has invested much of his personal energy in establishing the property as an art venue dedicated to artists, with modern comforts and proper studio space. The idea came after a visit to the Musée du Louvre-Lens, which is an outpost of the Paris Louvre that opened in 2012. The rectory is being fully refurbished according to the vision of NeM, the architecture practice who won the competition to make it the perfect artist residence.
François Pinault is not just the owner of the Christie’s auction houses and a string of luxury brands, he is also a patron of the arts known for supporting contemporary art in his Palazzo Grassi in Venice and other collections scattered across Europe.
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