PARIS, FRANCE.- Centre Pompidou presents Dionysiac through May 9th 2005. Dionysiac is an exhibition that brings together fourteen contemporary artists. Some of them are already well known in Paris, others have never shown here before. They range from Paul McCarthy to John Bock, Fabrice Hyber and Jason Rhoades. In most cases, the artists will present a new work, especially created for the exhibition.

DIO - A novel group exhibition, Dionysiac is a “reflection” exhibition, rather than a thematic display. It presents a state of mind that is shared by all the artists and offers its own perspective towards contemporary creation. Dionysiac attributes a special relationship to art and life. It is against resignation, which is expressed as much through anger as it is through pleasure received through destruction, through excitement of life and flux, and through joy to the point of excess. In addition, there is an inclination for laughter, for irony and a form of subversion, in so far as it is still possible today. Music is also at the heart of the exhibition with a “sound room” created together with the artists. The neologism, Dionysiac, has been invented by combining French and English. The newly coined word is derived from the adjective “dionysiaque”, used by Friedrich Nietzsche in his book The Birth of Tragedy (1871). In using “dionysiaque”, Nietzsche was inspired by the Greek god Dionysos, god of both explosion and enthusiasm, the force of life and destruction, of all outbursts. Nietzsche developed this aesthetic concept throughout his written work, leading to the notion of flux in excess, of which life is only a part. Dionysiac goes hand in hand with Apollonian, the harmonious force. It is in this “tight”, even contradictory articulation, that contemporary tragedy is situated. The Dionysiac book published on the occasion of the exhibition is a publication conceived by Christine Macel with Christophe Brunquell and the artists. It includes the participation of Jean-Pierre Criqui and Barbara Stiegler.

The artists: John Bock - Born in 1965 in Germany, lives and works in Berlin. Christoph Büchel - Born in 1966 in Switzerland, lives and works in Basel. Maurizio Cattelan - Born in 1960 in Padua, Italy, lives and works in Milan and New York. Malachi Farrell - Born in 1970 in Ireland, lives at Malakoff. Gelatin - Austrian group of artists working in Vienna. Kendell Geers - Born in 1967 in South Africa, lives and works in Brussels. Thomas Hirschhorn - Born in 1957 in Bern, Switzerland, lives and works in Paris. Fabrice Hyber - Born in 1961 in Luçon, France, lives and works in Paris. Richard Jackson - Born in 1939 in Sacramento, USA, lives and works in Los Angeles. Martin Kersels - Born in 1960 in Los Angeles, USA, lives and works in Sierra Madre. Paul McCarthy - Born in 1945 in Salt Lake City, USA, lives and works in Los Angeles. Jonathan Meese - Born in 1971 in Tokyo, lives and works in Berlin. Jason Rhoades - Born in 1965 in Newcastle, USA, lives and works in Los Angeles. Keith Tyson - British born in Ulverston (UK) in 1969, lives and works in London.