VILLA ALBERTINE

FRENCH CREATIVE RESIDENCY PROGRAM

In Marfa Fuels New Collective Imagination Of Outer Space

BY BETTINA GARDELLES

How can we deconstruct our collective imagination of outer space? Can we nurture a thirst for exploration without feeding the hunger for conquest, territory, and appropriation?

In Marfa, Villa Albertine and the Centre Pompidou (Paris) launched a residency program to confront these questions head-on, through the work of four international artists and researchers: French author and exhibition curator Léa Bismuth, Spanish filmmaker and aerospace engineer Vanessa del Campo, France-based American designer Elizabeth Hong, and French CNRS research director Jean-Philippe Uzan. From October 5 to November 5, 2022, under the starry skies of Marfa, Texas, these four creatives-in-residence critically examined the drive for civilizational, technical, and economic conquest and proposed tools and reflections to help construct new imaginaries of outer space. Marfa and its surroundings are an ideal place for stargazing in the desert. The Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve was certified in 2022 and is the largest Reserve and protected Dark Sky Place in the world, spanning from Fort Davis, Texas, to the Rio Grande River and three protected areas in Mexico. It is home to the McDonald Observatory, a world-class astronomical observatory and research facility in Fort Davis, less than 40 miles north of Marfa.

The small town of Marfa has also become an art oasis in the desert and a world-famous contemporary art outpost since 1979, when minimalist artist Donald Judd decided to leave the bustle of Manhattan for the solitude of Marfa. With its unique combination of rurality and eccentricity, Marfa has grown into one of the world’s great contemporary art centers, where a new generation of artists has kept the flame alive.

Designed in collaboration with the historian, researcher, and theater director Frédérique Aït-Touati, this residency program establishes a dialogue between American experts and creators from France and beyond, while enriching residents’ individual projects with moments of collective reflection, learning, and critique.

Why now for an international cultural reassessment of space travel?

Gaëtan Bruel, Director of Villa Albertine, noted “In 2022, the appropriation of geographies and resources is an existential global issue. This residency is an opportunity to zoom out and imagine a different approach to the worlds around us, both terrestrial and beyond. We see Marfa as a perfect environment for this work, combining dark skies with a brilliant and diverse cultural scene.”

For a month, the four residents had time together to explore cultural institutions, the McDonald Observatory, and meet with Marfa artists and scientists. They had the opportunity to visit the Chinati Foundation and the Judd Foundation. They visited the Dixon Water Foundation ranches whose mission is to promote regenerative land management (water, carbon sequestration...). They spent a night at the McDonald Observatory to observe the sky. They visited Big Bend National Park with a geology professor.

They also had the opportunity to work on their personal projects: Léa Bismuth was writing a book called “Astral Meditation” in reference to Auguste Blanqui, French socialist and political activist; Vanesa del Campo was working on an experimental movie around the moon and maternity; The project of Elizabeth is called “Sky Walk”, and invites us to take a collective walk amongst the stars, the pathway guided by a fictional narrative that confronts the complex entanglements of space and colonization. Jean-Philippe Uzan started writing a fiction, which will perhaps take the form of an (art) installation.

Work is currently in progress for a global reflection on the residency, alongside the Centre Pompidou. But after the success of this first experiment, a second iteration in Marfa is a certainty for 2023.

Zooming out, this new residency in Marfa involved just four of the 90+ international artists, writers, researchers, and curators in residence across the US with Villa Albertine in 2022. Through the concept of exploratory residencies, Villa Albertine invites creators of all disciplines and nationalities to embed in a territory of their choice, exchange with key local communities, and nourish an original artistic or intellectual reflection on a contemporary issue or question.

These residencies are not intended to be conducted behind closed doors – that’s why Villa Albertine breaks down the four walls of the traditional residency based in a single location. Instead, these experiences serve as probing field work that inspires and forges new connections and ideas. Houston has already hosted five of these residency projects, including French astronomer Fatoumata Kebe and multi-prize-winning visual artist Lili Reynaud-Dewar. Another eight residents will pursue their work in Houston in in 2023. More about the residency program, and how to apply at: villa-albertine.org