Matthieu Laurette (born August 24, 1970 in Villeneuve Saint Georges,

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) is a

media Media may refer to: Communication * Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Interactive media, media that is inter ...

and conceptual

contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from about 1945 to the present. In the social sciences, contemporary history is also continuous with, and related t ...

French artist who works in a variety of media, from TV and

video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...

to installation and public interventions. He lives and works in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Biography

In 2003, Laurette received the

Ricard Prize The Ricard Prize (or Prix Ricard S.A.) was founded in 1999 and in 2006 its name changed to Prix Fondation d’Entreprise Ricard. The prize is awarded each year during the Parisian art fair FIAC by a committee of French collectors (friends of the ...

for the most representative artist under 40 y.o. within the French scene. Laurette uses various strategies to explore the relationships between conceptual art, Pop art,

Institutional Critique In art, institutional critique is the systematic inquiry into the workings of art institutions, such as galleries and museums, and is most associated with the work of artists like Michael Asher (artist), Michael Asher, Marcel Broodthaers, Daniel B ...

, economics and contemporary society. His best known works are ''Apparitions'' (1993–present), ''Money-back Products'' (''Produits remboursés'') (1991–2001), ''Citizenship Project'' (1996–present), ''El Gran Trueque'' (2000) and ''

Déjà vu ''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is the phenomenon of feeling like one has lived through the present situation in the past.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford University Press. pp. 167–1 ...

, The International

Look-alike A look-alike, or double, is a person who bears a strong physical resemblance to another person, excluding cases like twins and other instances of Family resemblance (anthropology), family resemblance. Some look-alikes have been notable individua ...

Conventions Convention may refer to: * Convention (norm), a custom or tradition, a standard of presentation or conduct ** Treaty, an agreement in international law ** Convention (political norm), uncodified legal or political tradition * Convention (meeting) ...

'' (2000–present), I AM AN ARTIST (1998–present), THINGS: Purchased With Funds Provided By (2010–2020), Tropicalize Me! (2011–present) and DEMANDS & SUPPLIES (2012–present). In 1993, Laurette declared himself an artist in a French TV gameshow called ''Tournez manège'' (''The Dating Game''). When the presenter asked him who he was he replied: 'A

multimedia artist Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms, such as writing, audio, images, animations, or video, into a single presentation. This is in contrast to tradition ...

'. Laurette had sent out invitations to an art audience to view the show on TV from their homes. Since his first ''Apparition'' on ''Tournez Manége'', Laurette has been developing an ongoing series of what he calls 'Apparitions' on TV and in the media. (In French the word Apparition means both 'apparition' and '

appearance Appearance may refer to: * Visual appearance, the way in which objects reflect and transmit light * Human physical appearance, what someone looks like * ''Appearances'' (film), a 1921 film directed by Donald Crisp * Appearance (philosophy), or ...

'). Among other shows he has appeared in ''La Grande famille'', Canal +, TV (France) (December 5, 1994), ''Je passe à la télé'', France 3, TV (France) (May 16, 1996), ''Journal de 13h'' et ''Journal de 20h'' France 2, TV (France) (May 16, 1997). Laurette's ''Apparition:

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'') is an American morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre on American television ...

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

, December 31, 2004, (

Guy Debord Guy-Ernest Debord (; ; 28 December 1931 – 30 November 1994) was a French Marxist theorist, philosopher, filmmaker, critic of work, member of the Letterist International, founder of a Letterist faction, and founding member of the Situat ...

Is So Cool!)'' (2004) renegotiates the critique of

mass media Mass media include the diverse arrays of media that reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit information electronically via media such as films, radio, recorded music, or television. Digital media comprises b ...

: amongst love message banners and goofy signs being held up by the audience of the outdoor-broadcast of the NBC infotainment show on

Rockefeller Plaza Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commerce, commercial buildings covering between 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street and 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The 14 original Art De ...

in New York, Laurette held a pink cardboard sign stating “GUY DEBORD IS SO COOL!” Laurette's ''Produits remboursés/Money-back Products'' (1993–2001) was his method of shopping and being fully refunded based on the basic marketing system of the major food and commodities corporations. He fed and cleaned himself for nothing by almost only ever buying products with "Satisfied or your money back" or "Money back on first purchase" offers. He gained fame in France and abroad at the time appearing on TV and media including in 1997 the French National evening news (Journal de 20h,

France 2 France 2 () is a French free-to-air public television channel. The flagship channel of France Télévisions, it broadcasts generalist programming including news, entertainment (such as dramas, films, and game shows), factual programmes, and sp ...

) and the frontpage of respected daily newspaper

Le Monde (; ) is a mass media in France, French daily afternoon list of newspapers in France, newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average print circulation, circulation of 480,000 copies per issue in 2022, including ...

with the headline 'Tomorrow we will eat for free' (Demain on mange gratis). In 1999 the

Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...

in UK featured him in an article titled "The secret of free shopping" and in 2000 the Daily Record named him 'The Freebie King'. In 2001 invited by

Harald Szeemann Harald Szeemann (11 June 1933 – 18 February 2005) was a Swiss curator, artist, and art history, art historian. Having curated more than 200 exhibitions, many of which have been characterized as groundbreaking, Szeemann is said to have helped red ...

curator of the

49th Venice Biennale The 49th Venice Biennale, held in 2001, was an exhibition of international contemporary art, with 65 participating nations. The Venice Biennale takes place biennially in Venice, Italy. Prizewinners of the 49th Biennale included: Richard Serra a ...

he presented ''Moneyback Life!'' a large retrospective installation combining enlargements of press cuttings, a truck with an integrated TV wall showing TV clips of his ''Apparitions/Appearances'' and a life size wax figure of himself pushing a shopping cart full of Moneyback products. ''

Citizenship Citizenship is a membership and allegiance to a sovereign state. Though citizenship is often conflated with nationality in today's English-speaking world, international law does not usually use the term ''citizenship'' to refer to nationalit ...

Project (Wanted: Financial Support to Acquire Citizenships)'' are a series of projects where Laurette attempts to acquire as many nationalities as possible, asking for donations as well as legal advice and practical support through donation boxes displayed in Museums and exhibitions as well as through websites. At the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Venice Biennale of Architecture, Architecture Biennale (), ...

in 2001, he offered non-represented countries national participation in the exhibition in exchange for the country granting him citizenship. Produced by Consonni, ''El Gran Trueque (The Great Exchange)'' (2000), the TV game Laurette has created, with its own

copyrighted A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive legal right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, e ...

concept, offered TV viewers in Bilbao a chance to buy objects in exchange for a car offered by Laurette – the highest offer would be accepted, and then in turn be presented the following week for another exchange, and so on. After a few months the series of swaps finished with a set of six blue glasses that remained unswapped. The ''Déjà vu - International Look-Alike Conventions'' featuring among others

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom ''Friends'' from 1994 to 2004, which earned her Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, and Scr ...

Sean Connery Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to Portrayal of James Bond in film, portray the fictional British secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in motion pic ...

Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (11 May 190423 January 1989), known as Salvador Dalí ( ; ; ), was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, ...

Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie ( ; born Angelina Jolie Voight, , June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Angelina Jolie, numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards ...

look-alike A look-alike, or double, is a person who bears a strong physical resemblance to another person, excluding cases like twins and other instances of Family resemblance (anthropology), family resemblance. Some look-alikes have been notable individua ...

s mingling with the crowd of art people, collectors and real celebrities are organized by Laurette on the occasion of art openings. These events have so far been held at

Dia Art Foundation Dia Art Foundation is a nonprofit organization that initiates, supports, presents, and preserves art projects. It was established in 1974 by Philippa de Menil, the daughter of Houston arts patron Dominique de Menil and an heiress to the Schlumbe ...

Fall Gala, New York (2004), Institute of Contemporary Art, London (2003); Contemporary Art Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania (2003); Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Australia (2002);

Art Sonje Center Artsonje Center is a private art museum in Seoul, Korea, located in Samcheong-dong, a neighborhood adjacent to known for its numerous art galleries, cafes, restaurants and boutiques. Founded in 1998, the museum introduces current and experimen ...

, Seoul (2002); Castello di Rivoli, Torino (2001); and

Centre Pompidou The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...

, Paris (2000). Matthieu Laurette has been represented by

Yvon Lambert Gallery Yvon Lambert Gallery is a contemporary art gallery in Paris founded by Yvon Lambert in 1966. History In 1966, Yvon Lambert opened his first gallery on the rue de L'Échaudé in Paris, France where he began to exhibit American artists. He showed f ...

, Paris (France); Deweer Gallery, Otegem (Belgium); Gaudel de Stampa, Paris (France); La Central, Bogotá (Colombia), Blow de la Barra, London (UK);

, New York (U.S.); Jousse Entreprise, Paris (France); Jousse Seguin, Paris (France).

Bibliography

* "The Real World: Artist Matthieu Laurette and the prolific curator, collector and dealer Seth Siegelaub discuss the legacy of Conceptual art, the origins of curating and how art history is made." FRIEZE #154, April 2013 (London)"The Real World: Artist Matthieu Laurette and the prolific curator, collector and dealer Seth Siegelaub discuss the legacy of Conceptual art, the origins of curating and how art history is made. FRIEZE #154, April 2013 (London)"
* Joerg Heiser, ''Matthieu Laurette'' in ''Notre Histoire''. Exh. cat. Paris: Palais de Tokyo/ Paris Musées (2006). * Jérôme Sans, ''Guy Debord is So Cool! - Interview with Matthieu Laurette''. Uovo (Milan), No 11, (June 2006): pp 52–75. * Jean-Max Colard, ''Matthieu Laurette: Yvon Lambert. Reviews'',

Artforum ''Artforum'' is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art. The magazine is distinguished from other magazines by its unique 10½ × 10½ inch square format, with each cover often devoted to the work of an artist. Notably ...

(New York), XLIII, no. 10 (Summer Issue 2005):p 335. *

Nicolas Bourriaud Nicolas Bourriaud (born 1965) is a French curator and art critic, who has curated a great number of exhibitions and biennials all over the world. Career Bourriaud was the Paris correspondent for '' Flash Art'' (1987–1995) and the founder and ...

, ''GNS (Global Navigation System)'', 27, 136–139. Exh. cat. Paris: Editions du Cercle d’art, 2003. * Jean-Charles Masséra, ''Sex, Art, and the Dow Jones'', pp 254–257. New York: Lukas & Sternberg, 2003. Essay. (first published as ''Amour, gloire et CAC 40'', pp 297–302. Paris: éditions POL (1999). Essay). *

, ''Postproduction: Culture as Screenplay: How Art Reprograms the World'', New York: Lukas and Sternberg (2002). * Pascal Beausse, ''La Biennale di Venezia, 49. Esposizione Internationale d'Arte - Platea dell'umanita''. Exh. cat. Venezia: Electa (2001). * Aline Caillet, ''Matthieu Laurette: un artiste en embuscade.'' Interview and text, Parpaings (Paris), no. 26 (October 2001):pp 1, 3–6. * Inés Champey, ''Un formalisme réaliste.'' In Formalisme, Jeux de formes, 75–101. Paris: Publications de La Sorbonne, 2001. Essay. * ''The freebie King.'' Daily Record (Glasgow) (December 8, 2000): p 37. * Jack Gee, ''The secret of free shopping.''

(October 22, 1999):p 23. * Anaïd Demir, ''Matthieu Laurette.'' Documents sur l'art (Dijon), no. 11 (Fall-Winter 1997–1998): pp 10–11. * Pascale Krémer, ''Demain on mange Gratis.''

(Paris), no. 16267 (May 16, 1997): p 1.

References

Sources

Interview with Jens Haaning and Matthieu Laurette and Aleksandra Mir - ICA, London exh. cat.artfacts biographyFrieze Art Fair project in 2005Review in ArtForum 2006

External links

*
Blow de la Barra gallery website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laurette, Matthieu French contemporary artists Artists from Amsterdam French video artists French conceptual artists Institutional Critique artists French performance artists 1970 births Living people