Révélations, the international biennial of arts and crafts, celebrates its tenth anniversary at the Grand Palais Ephémère, opposite the Eiffel Tower. Each edition of this fair highlights contemporary creation from a country or region of the world. In 2023, Quebec is in the spotlight, demonstrating the diversity of its artistic crafts.

BY CARINE LŒILLET

The 2023 edition is the sixth of the Révélations fair, but this biennial—now annual—has been celebrating crafts and creation for ten years. It was initiated in 2013 by Ateliers d'Art de France to highlight all crafts, represented by creators, artisans, manufacturers, galleries, designers, foundations, and schools. This year, 350 creators from 28 countries will present their creations from June 7 to 11 in the heart of Paris, at the end of the Champ de Mars, between the École Militaire and the Eiffel Tower. The Grand Palais Ephémère is hosting this internationally renowned event for the second consecutive year—during the renovations carried out at the Grand Palais until the 2024 Olympic Games—a testament to the vitality of the sector.

 

 

 

 

 

New countries are represented: Armenia, Egypt, Lebanon, Denmark, Rwanda, Ecuador, Saint Barthélemy. And Quebec has been chosen as the nation of honor. Jointly supported by the Conseil des métiers d'art du Québec and the Maison des métiers d'art de Québec, with the support of the Government of Quebec and the Délégation Générale du Québec in Paris, this participation is illustrated through the exhibition of exceptional pieces by 34 Quebec creators and Premieres
Nations, Indigenous peoples of Canada. Installed since its inception in the central aisle of the exhibition and designed by Adrien Gardère, the exhibition Le Banquet offers a selection of spectacular pieces from ten regions of the world. It illustrates the questions of artists and artisans on the most contemporary practices related to the crafts. Quebec and the First Nations take pride of place in the Le Banquet space, as do France and a European selection: Portugal, Ukraine, China, Ecuador, Egypt, and Rwanda.

 

Springboard and talent scout

 

Révélations promotes encounters between accomplished artists, young creators, professionals in the sector, students and the public, which represents 39 international visitors. The event aims to be a springboard for those who are starting out and a revealer for the talents of tomorrow. This is why new creators represent 000% of the total number of exhibitors. Institutions also take advantage of the five days of the exhibition to present their winners, with participation from the Young Artistic Creation Prize; the Office of Design, Fashion and Artistic Crafts; the Culture & Diversity Foundation; and the Rotary Club of Paris. The Révélations biennial also includes a program of guided tours, conferences and symposiums on the challenges of the creative sector, an auction and an Off-site tour, as well as
workshops reserved for children. Each edition highlights a unique piece, generally spectacular, which becomes the emblem of Révélations in the communication carried out around the event. To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the show,
The selected work was created by Japanese artist Kuniko Maeda, a paper sculptor based in London. This artist combines paper cutting, acrylic paint, and Kakishibu (a tannin lacquer from unripe persimmons, used for dyeing textiles, paper, and wood in Japan). Kuniko Maeda creates aerial forms, to which she adds a sometimes surprising color palette. She draws, then cuts out her work before suspending it using transparent threads to let it take flight. The sculpture she designed for the biennial, which she named Columbidae, lets light pass through it and give it unique effects. It seems to float in its frame, as if weightless.

 

Sustainable Development

 

The 6th edition of Révélations honors international creators whose sustainable approach is reflected first and foremost in their knowledge and relationship with materials, in the operation of their workshops and their sustainable production.
The raw materials used for the creations are respected: nothing is wasted, everything is transformed. While they sometimes come from far away when they are rare, the art studios prefer them local. And everything that is rejected is kept and reused for new creations. Each unique piece is intended to be passed on, it is therefore a sustainable good. Product traceability, recycling and upcycling, use of non-polluting or local materials… These concerns are illustrated through the offerings of the biennial's exhibitors. Furthermore, Révélations offers short films on the theme of sustainable development, presented as part of Quebec, Nation in the Spotlight. Also, a series of conferences.
program for the first day of opening on June 7, a conference entitled “The environmental challenge: the commitment of the crafts”, proposed by Ateliers d'Art de France.