Martine Feipel and Jean Bechameil: Garden of Resistance

Originating from the Luxembourg scene and active on the European scene, the artist duo Martine Feipel and Jean Bechameil (b. 1975, Luxembourg / b. 1964, Paris) has been developing a body of work since 2008 that is distinguished by the richness of its visual vocabulary and its socially conscious scrutiny of the contemporary world. Mudam Luxembourg – Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean has commissioned the artists to produce a new installation for its Jardin des sculptures.

The work of Martine Feipel and Jean Bechameil draws on Cubism experimentations, Constructivist compositions, Bauhaus functionalism, the stylised aesthetics of Art Deco and even kinetic art. By freely appropriating these aesthetic vocabularies and the research of these historical movements, their installations offer an immersive, physical and perceptual experience that combines the illusory with the imaginary. Martine Feipel and Jean Bechameil’s work also addresses another aspect of modernity and the contemporary world: the automatisation of industry and everyday life and their impact. This increasingly prevalent mechanisation of our societies is evident in their sculptures which often depict cogs and other machine parts, treated with resin or synthetic plaster to look like petrified remains devoid of functionality. By creating forms that invoke industrial modernity, Feipel and Bechameil also examine the “mechanisms” of contemporary lifestyles, together with their social and collective settings, in order to establish “spaces of possibility.”

Their works often take as their starting point the history of a place or the analysis of a specific context, but their visual power is derived from the artists’ ability to create theatrical environments, enhanced by subtle yet dramatic lighting, to which is sometimes added a background sound that contradicts the silence of the objects. The installation designed by Feipel and Bechameil for Mudam’s Jardin des sculptures presents three works, including a new one, titled Garden of Resistance produced for the exhibition to which it lends its name. The ensemble composes an artificial garden that combines discreet mechanical movements with light rustling sounds in the background.

Curator: Clément Minighetti assisted by Clémentine Proby

Public programme
Workshop, “prototype – copie – bijou” with Birgit Thalau

February 24, 2022, 2:30–4:30pm, aimed at children aged 9–12 | Mudamini Workshop
February 27, 2022, 10am–12pm and 2:30–4:30pm, Mudamini Sculpture Class
March 3, 2022, 2:30–4:30pm, aimed at children aged 6–8, Mudamini Workshop
March 5, 2022, 10am–1pm, aimed at teenagers aged 13+ | Art Freak
March 5, 2022, 2:30–5:30pm, workshop

Meet the artists: Martine Feipel & Jean Bechameil
March 30, 2022, 6:30–7:30pm, Frenche

Mudam Akademie: Know modern art – Dig contemporary creation
June 8, 2022, 6–7pm (Luxembourg), 7:30–8:30 (France)
​Exploring installation in modern art
Looking at the work of Martine Feipel and Jean Bechameil.

To view the full programme visit mudam.com. 

Also on view 
Freigeister: Fragments of an art scene in Luxembourg and beyond through February 27, 2022
mirror mirror: cultural reflections in fashion through April 24, 2022
Nedko Solakov: A Cornered Solo Show #1 through April 18, 2022
25 years of the Mudam Collection through April 18, 2022
Isamu Noguchi / Danh Vo: a cloud and flowers through September 19, 2022

Mudam Luxembourg – Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean promotes creativity, visionary thinking, openness and cultural participation for all. Like Luxembourg, Mudam is situated in Europe with a vision to the world. Mudam is committed to a more inclusive, tolerant and environmentally and socially responsible world in which museums play a leading role in the transmission of our contemporary cultural heritage for future generations.

Our mission is to collect, conserve and present the most relevant contemporary art of our time and to make it accessible to a diverse public. Through its exhibitions, publications, and artistic and educational programmes, Mudam fosters research and dialogue while giving special attention to the changing nature of art and its production in the world.