This exhibition traces the atypical trajectory of Belgian filmmaker, writer, and artist Chantal Akerman (Brussels 1950 - Paris 2015). From the very beginning in Brussels to the Mexican desert, from her very first films to her last installations in 2015. This is the first major exhibition on the Brussels-based artist, featuring unique and never-before-seen images, production, and working documents from her archive. Follow all the stages of her career through the years and places Akerman has traversed and filmed. She went there to work with media as diverse as film, television, text, and installation. Chantal Akerman was an inspiration to an entire generation. She remains a role model for a lot of directors and artists today. Expect a journey full of images and archives – from the burlesque to the tragic, from the intimacy of a bedroom to the desert.
From March 15 to July 21, CINEMATEK organizes a complete retrospective of Chantal Akerman's cinematographic work, accompanied by a carte blanche of the films that were most important to her. A modified version of the exhibition will be presented at the Jeu de Paume, Paris from September 28, 2024, to January 19, 2025.
As a partner in this retrospective, Sabzian will present a trilingual Collection of texts in French, English, and Dutch by and on Akerman on 13 March, combining texts that are already available on the website with new publications in the coming weeks, alongside a complete overview of Chantal Akerman’s filmography.
Image: Philippe Chancel, ‘Chantal’ © Adagp, Paris © SABAM 2023-2024