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Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You | Exhibition Kit

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Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You is a major solo exhibition by French artist Laure Prouvost, showcasing new commissions and a survey of existing work over the past decade. Prouvost is known for her multimedia installations and performances. 

Language is at the heart of Prouvost’s work, encompassing video, sound, installation, and performance to challenge linear narratives and blur the lines between reality and fiction. The artist invites you on a journey through the subterranean, the earthly and the celestial exploring language, sensation, and understanding, using familiar narratives to captivate your imagination. 

Prouvost’s latest exhibition, Oui Move In You is composed as a celebration of liberation and imagination, the sensual and sensuous, being and belonging, care and connection. The exhibition delves into the roles and legacies of grandmother and grandfather, the maternal spaces of mother and child, and contemporary social spaces in which humans commune with the natural world. 

Video interview with Laure Prouvost

List of works


How to use this Kit

This Education Kit was developed by Sirui Yang with assistance from the ACCA Education team to support learning alongside the ACCA exhibition Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You. Yang undertook an ACCA Education Internship in 2024 as part of her Master of Arts and Cultural Management, The University of Melbourne. Yang is an international emerging creative practitioner from Nanjing, China. She has chosen three key artworks from the exhibition, with discussion questions to prompt student thinking. Primary and secondary activities are mapped to the Victorian and Australian Curricula and can be found in the For Teachers section.

 “The intention of developing this Exhibition kit is to encourage diversity, creativity and experimentation with different textures, forms and fosters resourcefulness, creativity, and environmental awareness as a human being. It also promotes self-expression, empathy and appreciation of diverse cultures. I hope everyone will enjoy exploring Prouvost’s artworks and discovering and knowing new parts of themselves in the process. Enjoy!” – Sirui Yang

  1. Introduction
  2. About the Artist
  3. Key artworks
    1. Laure Prouvost, Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse, 2023
    2. Laure Prouvost, La forêt 2024
    3. Laure Prouvost, Every Sunday, Grand Ma, 2022
  4. Support Material
  5. For Teachers

About the artist

Laure Prouvost (she/her) is a leading figure in French contemporary art, known for her multimedia installations and performances. With the exhibition at ACCA marking her Australian debut, Prouvost’s work spans film, painting, sound and sculpture, fusing disparate materials to create immersive experiences and intricate narratives. Born in 1978 in Lille, France, Prouvost lives and works in Brussels, Belgium. Prouvost represented France at the 58th International Art Exhibition at the Venice Biennale in 2019. She was the recipient of the prestigious Turner Prize in 2013 and the Max Mara Art Prize for Women in 2011. Prouvost has recently presented solo exhibitions at Remai Modern (Saskatoon, Canada 2023); Nasjonalmuseet (Oslo, Norway, 2022); Longlati Foundation (Shanghai China, 2022); and Kunsthal Charlottenborg (Copenhagen, Denmark, 2021), which included a major new video work co-commissioned with ACCA; as well as a wide range of public art and performance projects.

Key Artworks

Laure Prouvost, Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse 2023 mixed media installation with DMX light and sound, glass objects, ceramic logs, Bairnsdale toppings, driftwood, charred wood with selected works from artist’s studio. Dimensions variable Courtesy the artist; Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris and Brussels; carlier | gebauer, Berlin and Madrid; and Lisson Gallery, London, New York and Shanghai. Photography Andrew Curtis

Lauren Prouvost, Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse 2023

Mixed media installation with DMX light and sound, glass objects, ceramic logs, Bairnsdale toppings, driftwood, charred wood with selected works from artist’s studio. Dimensions variable. Photography Andrew Curtis.

Courtesy the artist; Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris and Brussels; carlier | gebauer, Berlin and Madrid; and Lisson Gallery, London, New York and Shanghai.

Key Ideas and Concepts: Mixed media installation, multi-sensory experience, narrative exploration

Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse 2023 is an immersive mixed media installation that takes the form of a makeshift campfire. The work weaves together materials such as glass objects, ceramic logs, gravel, wood that variously make reference to the many symbolic ‘grandmothers’ who have shaped Prouvost both personally and artistically. The use of DMX light (a type of digital lighting control, set to a timer) highlights the story being narrated by Prouvost. Along with the use of sound, the moving lights immerse the viewer in a multi-sensory exploration of a narrative and cultural landscape.

Challenging traditional notions of storytelling by interweaving disparate materials into dynamic spatial arrangements, Prouvost’s installation invites viewers to engage in the juxtaposition of elements, stimulating a sensory journey beyond traditional narrative formats.

The installation is Prouvost’s exploration of the concept of the “glaneuse,” or gleaner, referencing the historical practice of collecting leftover crops from the fields. Drawing on this metaphor, Prouvost encourages viewers to become “glaneuses” of the narrative, searching for fragments of meaning in the assemblages of objects and stimuli presented in the installation. 

Prouvost drew inspiration from the late French new wave filmmaker Agnès Varda, who also featured in her film They Parlaient Idéale 2019 (a central part of Prouvost’s representation of France at the 2019 Venice Biennale). In Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse 2023, Varda is symbolised by the potato, a nod to her love of the vegetable as in Varda’s 2000 documentary film Les Glaneurs et la glaneuse (The Gleaners and I), which explores the lives of French gleaners. This connection is at the heart of Prouvost’s work, especially given Varda’s influence on her artistic journey. 

Discussion questions:

  1. What objects can you see in the installation? What do they make you wonder?
  2. How does Prouvost utilise sensory elements such as light and texture to evoke a narrative experience within the installation?
  3. In what ways does Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse 2023 challenge traditional modes of storytelling and audience engagement?
Laure Prouvost, La forêt 2024 (detail), installation view, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne. Courtesy the artist, and Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris and Brussels; carlier | gebauer, Berlin and Madrid; Lisson Gallery, London, New York and Shanghai. Photograph: Andrew Curtis

Laure Prouvost, La forêt 2024

Plant matter, reverse garbage, technological detritus and other found objects. Dimensions variable. Photography Andrew Curtis.

Courtesy the artist; Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris and Brussels; carlier | gebauer, Berlin and Madrid; and Lisson Gallery, London, New York and Shanghai.

Key ideas and concepts: Bricolage, ecological consciousness, participatory art

La forêt 2024 takes the form of a suspended forest of discarded human made and natural objects, gleaned from walks along Melbourne’s waterways and salvaged from refuse centres. This participatory art installation was constructed through a series of collaborative workshops led by ACCA’s Education Team under the artistic direction of Laure Prouvost. Prouvost’s instructions encouraged participants to create small assemblage sculptures that breathed new life into discarded materials.  

Suspended at the end of ACCA’s largest exhibition space (Gallery 1), La forêt 2024 invites visitors to navigate their own pathways through the forest of reclaimed objects, forging intimate encounters with the diverse ecology of materials on display. The installation prompts viewers to reconsider their relationship with consumption and waste.

The proliferation of sculptural forms within La forêt 2024 echoes the rapid montage of images characteristic of Prouvost’s video work, blurring the boundaries between the tangible and the ephemeral. As viewers traverse the forest’s labyrinthine pathways, they are compelled to confront the tangible impact of human activity on the natural world, while also recognising the inherent beauty and resilience embedded within discarded objects.

Prouvost has stated that La forêt is not exclusively a forest in a woodland but also a kelp forest or “sky forest” that Grandma swims through: “touching the little seaweeds of the sky.”, creating an echo with the neighbouring installation Every Sunday, Grand Ma 2022.

Discussion questions:

  1. How would you describe this installation? 
  2. What materials have been used to create this installation?
  3. Why do you think the artist selected this combination of materials? Think about the relationship between the human made and the natural. 
Laure Prouvost, Every Sunday, Grand Ma 2022, installation view, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne. Courtesy the artist, and Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris and Brussels; carlier | gebauer, Berlin and Madrid; Lisson Gallery, London, New York and Shanghai. Photograph: Andrew Curtis

Laure Prouvost, Every Sunday, Grand Ma 2022

4k video, colour, sound; set within an installation of glass, rocks, smoke. 7:17 mins. Dimensions variable. Photography Andrew Curtis.

Courtesy the artist; Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris and Brussels; carlier | gebauer, Berlin and Madrid; and Lisson Gallery, London, New York and Shanghai.

Key ideas and concepts:  Memory, composition, intergenerational connection, sensory immersion

Every Sunday, Grand Ma 2022 is a 7-minute video. The video depicts Grandma’s daily ritual of jumping from a plane, she grows a pair of wings and transforms into a human bird, flying over sand dunes, through forests, above freeways, and looking down upon the world below. Naked and weightless, the image of Grandma is one of ultimate liberation, as she is freed from the weight of her earthly responsibilities. 

This immersive video, featuring vibrant colours and enveloping sound, is accompanied by glass birds, rocks, and smoke. This installation serves to enhance the thematic resonance of the video, imbuing the viewing experience with a tactile dimensionality. As viewers navigate the spatial arrangement, they are surrounded by a multisensory landscape that mirrors the complexities of memory and emotion explored within the video.

Every Sunday, Grand Ma 2022 conveys a deeply personal narrative, as Prouvost shared that Grandma dangles on a rope from her husband’s plane every Sunday: ‘She gets naked, jumps, and feels the elements, the sky, connects with levitation.’ Through the use of vivid imagery and emotive soundscapes, Prouvost invites viewers to embark on a nostalgic journey, traversing the realms of past and present, reality and imagination.

Set within the confines of the installation’s ethereal environment, the video unfolds as a visual poem, capturing fleeting moments of intergenerational connection and familial intimacy. Through a series of fragmented vignettes, Prouvost skilfully weaves scenes of domesticity, nature, and ritual, evoking a sense of longing and reverie.

Discussion questions:

  1. How does Prouvost use elements such as colour, principles such as space and materials such as mist and glass to evoke an emotional response from viewers?
  2. Do you see the video and the objects (e.g. the glass birds and rocks) as one artwork or multiple artworks? Think about the relationship between the artworks. 
  3. What is the significance of the Grandma figure in this artwork?

For Teachers

Primary activities

Found Material Forest

In this activity, students will collect various found materials from their surroundings, such as leaves and twigs, discarded, unused cables and other electronic materials, discarded paper, fabric scraps, etc. Each student will need to collect at least 5 found or natural materials. They will then use these materials to recreate objects or scenes that hold personal significance to them. For example, they can use at least 5 materials to create a small sculpture. This activity encourages creativity and experimentation with different textures and forms and fosters resourcefulness, creativity, and environmental awareness.

Materials:
Human-made materials such as e-waste, plastic waste, etc.
Natural materials such as sticks, leaves, flowers, feathers, etc.
Hot glue guns, string, or tape to join the objects (make sure the selected material is age appropriate and used safely)

STEP 1: Material Collection
Encourage students to collect at least 5 discarded or natural materials (e.g. leaves, twigs, discarded electronics, paper, plastic).

STEP 2: Brainstorming
Encourage students to think about how to combine these 5 discarded or natural materials together into one sculpture, consider colour, texture, size variety.

STEP 3: Making
Guide students to begin constructing their sculpture or scene using the collected materials. Encourage them to experiment with different arrangements and combinations to achieve the desired effect.

STEP 4: Presentation
Once the sculptures or scenes are complete, ask students to present it to the class, explaining the meaning behind the choice of materials and what inspired them to create it.

 

 

Australian Curriculum / Visual Arts / Years F-6

Explore ideas and artworks from different cultures and times, to use as inspiration for their own representations (ACAVAM106) (ACAVAM110) (ACAVAM114)

Use materials, techniques and processes to explore visual conventions when making artworks (ACAVAM107) (ACAVAM111) (ACAVAM115)

Create and display artworks to communicate ideas to an audience (ACAVAM108) (ACAVAM112) (ACAVAM116)

Victorian Curriculum / Visual Arts / Levels F-6

Explore and Express Ideas (VCAVAE013)(VCAVAE017) (VCAVAE021) (VCAVAE025) (VCAVAE029)
Visual Arts Practices (VCAVAV018) (VCAVAV022) (VCAVAV026) (VCAVAV030)
Present and Perform  (VCAVAP019) (VCAVAP023)(VCAVAP027)
Respond and Interpret (VCAVAR020) (VCAVAR024) (VCAVAR028) (VCAVAR032)

Curriculum Interpretation

The activity is designed in response to the exhibition Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You, an exhibition encompassing video, sound, installation, and performance. Engaging in creative practice with mixed media and multi-sensory experiences can help students develop design thinking and decision making skills like empaths with different materials, ideation and prototyping. These practices will be using found and natural materials for exploring linguistic culture, self-identity, and genealogy. 

Additionally, these activities promote environmental awareness by encouraging the reuse and repurposing of materials. The intention of activities is to encourage students and teachers to explore their own experience within the external cultural and natural environment, facilitating deeper connections with family, friends and nature.  

Teachers are presented with the opportunity to embed STEM ideas and principles into their lesson plan to develop students’ understanding about their artworks.

By undertaking these activities, students:
Explore the relationship between art and their environment.
Explore ideas and concepts related to sound, embodied experience and critical listening in relation to contemporary art.
Experiment with a range of reflective and experiential drawing techniques.
Select and experiment with a range of artforms, styles, materials, and technologies.
Consider the exhibition Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You as inspiration for their own art making.
Consider how STEM ideas and principles are embedded in art making processes.

Secondary activities

Multimedia Poetry Fusion Gathering

Drawing inspiration from Laure Prouvost’s Gathering Ho Ma, The glaneuse 2023 merging glass objects, ceramic logs, gravel, wood that make reference to the many symbols relating to artistic ‘Grandmothers’ who have shaped Prouvost both personally and artistically. This workshop invites secondary students to design their own immersive art experiences. A creative process that blends multimedia installation design and multilingual poetry collection to explore language, identity and cultural connections. Students are encouraged to reflect on their personal experiences using language and identity. In the process, they will create multilingual poetry that incorporates words or phrases from the different languages spoken in the family or a language learnt at school. Students can experiment with a variety of poetry forms and techniques, such as free verse, Haiku, Chinese poetry (e.g. Gushi) or sonnets. Then they can transform the poetry into shapes – a picture or a sculpture (e.g. they can write a sentence not only from left to right, they can write wavy, circular or spiral shapes).

In the end, they consider themes, narratives, verbal and visual language, and ultimately present their proposed installations to their peers.

Materials:
Paper
Writing and drawing tools (e.g. pens, pencils, textas, etc.)

STEP 1: Cultural Reflection
Encourage students to reflect on their personal experiences related to language and identity.
Prompt students to consider incorporating words or phrases from languages spoken within their families or learned at school.

STEP 2: Poetry Research & Exploration
Guide students in experimenting with various poetry forms and techniques, such as free verse, Haiku, Chinese poetry, and sonnets.

STEP 3: Poetry Transformation to Objects
Instruct students to transform their poetry into visual representations, such as pictures or sculptures.
For pictures, allow freedom for innovative approaches, such as shaping sentences in unconventional forms (e.g., wavy, circular, spiral). Think about each sentence as a texture in a picture.
For sculptures, think about the materials that Prouvost used in her artwork to express her personal experiences, then think and create your own by using discarded human made and natural materials.

STEP 4: Conceptualisation
Facilitate discussions among students on themes, narratives, and the integration of verbal and visual language (e.g. pictures and sculptures that are transformed by different types of poetry).
Encourage students to collaborate and provide feedback to refine their ideas. Think and communicate how they would map individual reflection on language into their final installation.

STEP 5: Collaboration and Presentation
Facilitate and encourage students to put their ideas and concepts into a practical set up. This will allow them to test and make sure their artworks are able to be installed and connect to the theme of the installation.
Provide opportunities for students to present and introduce their group exhibitions to their peers including schoolmates, teachers, parents and (optional) related members of the public.
Foster a supportive environment for sharing ideas and celebrating linguistic diversity and cultural heritage

Extension:
Emphasise creative expression and encourage students to explore diverse linguistic and cultural influences.

Australian Curriculum / Visual Arts / Years 7-10

Experiment with visual arts conventions and techniques (ACAVAM118) (ACAVAM125)
Develop planning skills for art-making by exploring techniques and processes used by different artists  (ACAVAM120) (ACAVAM127)
Practise techniques and processes to enhance representation of ideas in their art-making (ACAVAM121) ​​ (ACAVAM128)

Victorian Curriculum / Visual Arts / Levels 7-10

Experiment with visual arts conventions and techniques (ACAVAM118) (ACAVAM125)
Develop planning skills for art-making by exploring techniques and processes used by different artists  (ACAVAM120) (ACAVAM127)
Practise techniques and processes to enhance representation of ideas in their art-making (ACAVAM121) ​​ (ACAVAM128)

Curriculum Interpretation

The activity is designed in response to the exhibition Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You, an exhibition encompassing video, sound, installation, and performance. Engaging in creative practice with mixed media and multi-sensory experiences can help students develop design thinking and decision making skills like empaths with different materials, ideation and prototyping. This activity promotes self-expression, empathy and appreciation of diverse cultures. Students explore language and identity through poetry and art making. Students are encouraged to reflect on their cultural background and personal experiences using language and identity.

By undertaking these activities, students:
Explore the relationship between art and their environment.
Explore ideas and concepts related to sound, embodied experience and critical listening in relation to contemporary art.
Experiment with a range of reflective and experiential drawing techniques.
Select and experiment with a range of artforms, styles, materials, and technologies.
Consider the exhibition Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You as inspiration for their own art making.
Consider how STEM ideas and principles are embedded in art making processes.

 

 

Contact ACCA

This education resource has been produced by ACCA Education to provide information and classroom support material for education visits to the exhibition Laure Prouvost: Oui Move In You. The reproduction and communication of this resource is permitted for educational purposes only.

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