“Conversations Ex Situ”: An Exceptional And Meaningful Artistic Collaboration

Initiated By LVMH, “Conversations Ex Situ”, The Artistic Collaboration Between The Visual Artist Jérémy Gobé And Five Female Artisans From La Fabrique NOMADE, Will Be Displayed In Venice As Part Of Homo Faber, An International Exhibition Dedicated To Craftsmanship

“Conversations Ex Situ” underlines LVMH’s desire to further commit to sustaining and raising the profile of the craft professions. This unique collaboration is in keeping with LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence programme which aims to promote savoir-faire to a wider audience, ensuring that it is passed on and highlighting those who work in these professions. This piece alone emphasizes three of the Group’s key commitments: protecting biodiversity; sustaining and passing on savoir-faire; and a societal commitment which has sprung into action with the support of La Fabrique NOMADE, an association which helps refugee artisans to find employment. Launched by LVMH to a contemporary art audience during the 2021 FIAC in Paris, the piece will now be shown to an enthusiastic artisan audience at Homo Faber in Venice, from 10 April to 1 May 2022. It will then be displayed at Revelations, the International Fine Crafts and Creation Biennial in June, in Paris.

In 2021, LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence invited the internationally renowned visual artist Jérémy Gobé to combine his artistic vision with the expertise of five female artisans, supported by La Fabrique NOMADE: Anna-Karina Raga (jeweller), Faten Al Ali (mosaicist), Fiorella Gonzalez (crocheter), Ghazaleh Esmailpour Qouchani (jeweller) and Serap Karabulut (embroiderer). From five different countries (Venezuela, Syria, Peru, Iran and Turkey), they have powerful and moving personal stories and, thanks to their craft profession, are now starting over in France. Through this collaboration, La Fabrique NOMADE has connected the artist and artisans and built a bridge between expertise and art by supporting their work on the Jérémy Gobé piece, which was housed throughout the project beneath the arches of the Viaduc des Arts in Paris.

“Knowledge of our heritage and traditional expertise helps us innovate today to shape the world of tomorrow”. – Jérémy Gobé, artist.

As well as raising awareness of artisan expertise and those working in the professions, Jérémy Gobé and the artisans together examine the ties between creation and action, innovation and tradition, artist and artisan, the protection of biodiversity and those endangered by migration. “Conversations Ex Situ” grew out of this collaboration: a series of individual pieces forming a larger creation, like coral polyps which, alongside others sharing same skeleton, form a reef. The installation features five books which explore how the project came together, as well as the biographies of each artisan, as told to the artist.

This piece will be presented in the Next of Europe space at the Homo Faber exhibition in the Giorgio Cini Foundation.

The LVMH group, Jérémy Gobé, La Fabrique NOMADE and its artisans at the Homo Faber international exhibition to underline their commitments through a three-dimensional piece.

The Group’s participation in the Homo Faber exhibition in Italy is part of a comprehensive strategy to promote the “Conversations Ex Situ” piece to an audience with craft expertise. In line with LVMH’s values, this coral-themed collaboration reflects its stakeholders’ shared commitment to protecting biodiversity, sustaining and passing on savoir-faire, and their societal commitment. This three-dimensional piece is a reminder of the Group’s responsibility.

Jérémy Gobé, Alexandre Boquel, Inès Mesmar
and the artisans of La Fabrique NOMADE ©Marie Rouge

Key dates

• 9 April 2022, 9.30 am: the Homo Faber exhibition’s opening address, attended by the Chair of the Cini Foundation, the Vice-Chair of the Michelangelo Foundation, the Mayor of Venice, representatives from the Italian government and Inès Mesmar, the founder of La Fabrique NOMADE.
• 9 April 2022, from 2.30 to 8.30 pm: private viewing of the Homo Faber exhibition, attended by artist Jérémy Gobé, the La Fabrique NOMADE team and LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence.
• 10 April 2022, 10 am: official opening of the Homo Faber exhibition to the general public – “Conversations Ex Situ” on display in the Next of Europe space.
• 13 April 2022, 5.30 pm: “Conversations Ex Situ: when artisan and artist unite to champion savoir-faire, biodiversity and journeys in exile”, with Inès Mesmar, Jérémy Gobé and Anna-Karina Raga in The Squero

Métiers d’Excellence’s next artistic collaboration (2022/23) will shine the spotlight on Italian savoir-faire

The annual artistic collaborations initiated by LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence open a dialogue between artists and artisans, highlighting the vision, creativity and expertise of each. Following the success of the first piece, LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence are currently working on a second edition. It will shine the spotlight on Italy through the talented artist Francesca Pasquali, whose work explores the relationship between nature and artificial elements around us through the use of recycled industrial materials and organic matter, and Simona Iannini, an expert in tombolo aquilano, a traditional 15th-century lace technique.

To bring this future piece to life, Francesca Pasquali and Simona Iannini are looking to take a collective approach by organising a public collection of traditional wooden spindles used in the tombolo technique. These spindles will be incorporated into the final piece. Donors can add the former owner’s name to the spindle, bringing a collective touch to the creation of this piece. Those wishing to take part can post their spindles either to the Istituto dei Mestieri d’Excellenza, Manifattura Tabacchi Via delle Cascine 35, 50144 Florence, Italy or drop them off at the Fiera Manidoro which will take place from 29 April to 1 May in Bellaria Igea Marina (https://manidorofiera.it/).

This piece will be unveiled at the end of 2022, before embarking on an exhibition tour through various galleries in Italy and France. In tandem, educational art and crafts workshops will be run by the artist and artisan for young students.

Dialogue between art and crafts

The artist Jérémy Gobé

The artist Jérémy Gobé’s work presents a vision of art “in life”, showing not the past but the continuous. Inspired by traditional savoir-faire, he imagines comprehensive solutions to contemporary issues. In 2017, he founded “Corail Artefact”, a project combining art, savoir-faire, science, industry and education to save coral reefs.

La Fabrique NOMADE

Supported by LVMH since 2019, this association works to help refugee and migrant artisans find employment in France and champions a new integration model to enable these people to resume their profession, find their rightful place in society and bring new meaning to their lives after exile.

LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence

Practised by 80,000 people around the world, LVMH’s Métiers d’Excellence encompass more than 280 Creative, Craft and Customer Experience professions requiring unique savoir-faire.

The Métiers d’Excellence have a three-fold mission:

• PASS ON skills to ensure that our professions thrive in the future, and recruit the most talented people.
• RECOGNISE and develop talented people at our Maisons.
• CELEBRATE the extraordinary Heritage of Savoir-Faire Excellence that makes LVMH unique around the world, and showcase our initiatives among the general public.