On Beds, Bats, Plants, Time and Memory

<p>It is an unusually warm June week when I travel by train from Paris to Lens. The small town in the northwest of France was an important coal-mining centre until the last mine closed in 1986. Today, it is the Louvre-Lens that puts this place on the cultural map. Although a visit to the museum has been on my list for a while, it is not the purpose of my trip. I am on my way to meet the artist Benoît Piéron (*1983, FR), who currently lives and works in Lens as part of a one-year residency programme.</p> <p>As soon as I arrive, I am confronted with a large grey gate that blocks any view into the front yard. I ring the bell and it takes a little while before Benoît Piéron opens a smaller passageway through the gate. Shyly but welcomingly, he greets me and ushers me inside, into the freestanding house that was formerly a presbytery, he tells me. It is the type of house one mostly finds in the province. With its symmetrical façade marked by tall windows and completely surrounded by a lush garden, it conveys a modest grandness.</p> <p>Inside the house, our conversation takes off. This studio visit is a kind of blind date as we have never met in person before. We talk about his many projects in 2023, including the group show <em>Exposed </em>at Palais de Tokyo, the Liverpool Biennial, his solo exhibition at Chisenhale Gallery, and the Pinault artist residency in Lens…</p>