The Art Newspaper

It's not all white

By The Art Newspaper. From In The Frame
Published online: 06 October 2009

The most intriguing (and entertaining) PR blurb to ping into our email box must be that of the Paris-based gallery Patrick Seguin which presents the show "We are sun-kissed and snow-blind" from 23 October. The premise of the exhibition, which includes 22 high-profile artists such as Liam Gillick and Franz West, is: "All works are, simply put, white." The show tackles two "misunderstandings", preaches the pr spiel: "Misunderstanding no. 1: White as a colour symbolising not only virginity, immaculacy, innocence, and modesty, but also grief, death, joy, and life (depending on the cultural area); white as a clothing colour worn by universalist gurus, including those of art (Karl-Heinz Stockhausen) and philosophy (Alain Badiou)...white representing the pope, emptiness, the Ku Klux Klan. Misunderstanding no. 2: White as a colour of fashion; white expressing summer; white associated with Mediterranean life and glamour; white yachts and convertibles; white lines; the place where all other glittery colours sunbathe; minimalist interfaces (Apple); Michelle Obama (Narciso Rodriguez) and Carla Bruni (Dior), June 2009; New York fashion week, September 2007, colour of the season: white." Quite.