Christian Boltanski

Strongly influenced by Claude Lévi-Strauss and Harald Szeemann, he developed his own sort of “personal ethnology”. From 1976 to 1985, Boltanski created a series of monumental works which clearly showed the artist's penchant for the creation of anthropomorphic objects and silhouettes, an attempt to represent and lend a voice to his absent subjects.

Ever since the 1960s, French artist Christian Boltanski has been tirelessly exploring themes of memory. His approach extends from an archaeological restitution of our existence to its representation. Strongly influenced by Claude Lévi-Strauss and Harald Szeemann, he developed his own sort of “personal ethnology”. From 1976 to 1985, Boltanski created a series of monumental works which clearly showed the artist's penchant for the creation of anthropomorphic objects and silhouettes, an attempt to represent and lend a voice to his absent subjects.