Andrei Molodkin
Absolute Return

In December 2011, The Museum of Contemporary and Modern Art of Saint Étienne chose to showcase artists from Central and Eastern Europe or present the Renaissance stage through a collective exhibition. The building's space allows for two monumental pieces to be installed in opposite rooms, including a sculpture from the Entropic Library of Oldenburg and a painting by Bertrand Lavier that challenges the notion of monumentality in contemporary art. The fragility of the Clear Glass Stack, made up of industrialized glass objects by Tony Cragg and Attraverso, is used to question our perception of things and the surrounding space. The monumentality guides visitors towards the realistic works of Hungarian artist Laszlo Fehér, who explores everyday subjects with a powerful black and white palette. Fehér's recent work explores his environment through paintings, such as a series of portraits of homeless people in a park.

Andrei Molodkin's drawings are shown at the 1st floor, portraying his ideology, political engagement, and place in the art world. The main piece is a 6 meters wide ballpoint pen drawing on canvas, depicting the molesting of a journalist near Louvre Museum in Paris few years earlier.

The catalogue dedicated to Molodkin’s restrospective work, focus on iconic sketches and drawings which symbolize his Work. The design synthetizes the deep research of the artist formal idea inscribe in political minimalism.

The catalogue is now part of Centre Pompidou Public Library as representative of Andrei Molodkin carreer.