The Chanot Art Centre is exhibiting the explorations of Julien Nédélec, including sculptures, booklets, and items for purchase, as well as ensemble pieces conceived specifically for Clamart that defy the laws of gravity.

No Drop Without Gravity—A reference to the research undertaken by Newton or Einstein, could the title of this exhibition—an absurd syllogism—be drawn from a Dada or Fluxus journal ? Or could it perhaps offer a glimpse of a new creative system favoured by the artist ? Far from it : this clever yet self-evident witticism allows Julien Nédélec to regroup in a single statement the references and methods undergirding his artistic process. The statement first indicates the artist’s interest in scientific research and in the study of mathematical systems and series, inspiring unprecedented creative protocols. These fields of study range far and wide, from “tinkerology” to the observation of UFOs. Moreover, we are presented with a moral that reflects experience. Might this moral perhaps allude to ill-fated attempts to overcome gravity in the artist’s atelier ? Whatever thought his works—whose perfectly elaborated touches put to shame any mass-produced object—may provoke, Julien Nédélec is fundamentally an artist of the atelier and of the handmade. The atelier thus becomes the heart of each new exploration culminating in a finished piece, as well as the space of the non-finite, of failure, and of doubt. Ultimately, Julien Nédélec demonstrates here once more, in his capacity as master brainstormer, his art of the formula. As every project title or expression appearing in his pieces can be read as a play on words, he never fails to add an extra dimension to the interpretation of his works. Active from the very inception of the work, the acrobatics of language allows for subtle shifts from one medium to another. This is, for example, the case of the piece “I Lack Polish”, which perfectly embodies the transfer of language to sculpture and vice-versa : an effectively unpolished mirror causes this statement to appear while also reflecting the gazer who nevertheless remains polished. Its title akin to a promise, the exhibition No Drop Without Gravity extends the personal investigations of Julien Nédélec and gathers his sculptures, booklets, and items for sale, as well as new ensemble pieces conceived specifically for Clamart that defy the laws of gravity.
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The exhibition has been created thanks to the generous loans made by 19 collectors : Hervé Acker, Jean-Pierre Biron, Horace Boé, Nicole et Marcel Bonfils, Cornillot, Entrepart, Joseph Kouli, Lebrun, Cabrero, Saly, Kerenedis Pepe, and others who wished to remain anonymous.