Ismaïl Bahri

Ismaïl Bahri (Tunisia, 1978) uses video, drawing, sculpture and sound without specialization. He positions himself as an observer, setting up a device for capturing gestures and empirical experimentation, paying attention to “what happens”. His work is interested in the meaning that emerges at the periphery of the gaze, in the presence of the surrounding world that outcrops and reveals its presence. Ismaïl Bahri’s work has been shown at the Jeu de Paume (Paris), the Reina Sofia Museum (Madrid), the Centre Pompidou (Paris), La Criée (Rennes), La Verrière (Brussels), the Beirut Art Center (Beirut) and the Staatliche Kunsthalle (Karlsruhe). His films have been selected for festivals such as TIFF (Toronto), NYFF (New York), IFFR (Rotterdam) and FID (Marseille).

At Villa Medici, Ismaïl Bahri aims to develop research based on Lucretius’ De rerum natura (On the nature of things). This poem serves as a starting point for sculptural, graphic and, above all, filmic experiments. Between studio investigations and outdoor quests, the residency opens up a time of fermentation conducive to the daily observation of natural phenomena. In direct contact with the elements, the empirical methodology proposed by the poem will activate various avenues of research and invention.