A gymnasium that became a place of contemporary art exhibition after it was put up for sale in 2010, the room with rounded lines has regained its original appearance: on the colored floor, basketballs, three-point line and steel basket surmounted by a hand - a nod to the open hand of the Indian city of Chandigarh designed by the urban planner - fill the room with its white walls.
"Seven years ago, when I first came to the Cité Radieuse, it was in winter and this room was empty," recalls Daniel Arsham, to whom the Center d'Art de la Cité Radieuse, Mamo , founded by Ora-ïto, gave carte blanche.
"The city (of Marseille), its architecture, are very different from the rest of the country and this building in particular is incredible", explains the forties "fallen in love" with the place.
“A lot of my work is oriented towards popular culture and basketball: the idea was to bring its place back to its first function”, explains the New Yorker.
New York artist Daniel Arsham in Marseille, June 24, 2022 Nicolas TUCAT AFP
Outside the gymnasium, on the terrace, three bronze sculptures pierced with crystals representing Greek and Roman statues as well as a futuristic car, complete the exhibition.
Past and future civilizations face each other and blur the marks of time in one of the oldest towns in France.
The exhibition is visible until September 25.
© 2022 AFP