From Agnès Varda to Giuseppe Penone, the strange passion of artists for potatoes deciphered in Aubenas

D’Agnès Varda à Giuseppe Penone, l’étrange passion des artistes pour les patates décryptée à Aubenas

The article explores the exhibition "Des patates" at Le Château – Centre d'Art Contemporain et du Patrimoine in Aubenas, France, which celebrates the humble potato as an artistic subject. It highlights how filmmaker and visual artist Agnès Varda turned potatoes into art with her 2003 Venice Biennale project "Patatutopia," dressing as a potato and scattering 700 kilos of tubers, inspired by her documentary *Les Glaneurs et la glaneuse*. The show also features works by Giuseppe Penone, Michel Blazy, Valérie Geissbühler Pacheco, and Lucas Chanoine, all using potatoes to explore themes of consumption, waste, colonialism, and the cycle of life.

Les vernissages cette semaine dans les galeries parisiennes

This week, several Parisian galleries are opening new exhibitions, with a concentration in the Marais district. Highlights include Olivier Kaeppelin's group show of four female painters at H Gallery, Mamma Andersson's works on paper at David Zwirner, Lucio Fontana's ceramics at Karsten Greve, Michel François's entropic ensembles at Art: Concept, and Anselm Kiefer's show at Thaddaeus Ropac in Pantin. Other notable openings include Linda Sanchez at Galerie Papillon, Chechu Álava at Galerie Xippas, and group exhibitions at Galerie Allen and Galerie The Pill.