Born in 1986 in Brest, France
Lives and works in Paris, France

Jean-Marie APPRIOU

It is with remarkable technical skill that Jean-Marie Appriou takes control of sculptural materials—aluminum, bronze, glass, clay, wax—to envisage fantastical worlds inhabited by human, animal and vegetal figures. Through their skillfully constructed scale, his often imposing works nevertheless maintain an intimate relationship with the viewer, as if to better communicate their disturbing strangeness. 

Deeply dreamlike, Appriou’s material universe is imbued with telluric concerns approached from an original perspective: that of the legendary. Horses, snakes, locusts, sharks and seahorses compose a bestiary charged with powerful symbolism. They evolve in a dream realm, a marvelous natural world that becomes a theater of striking characters. Sowers, gatherers, beekeepers and Japanese Ama divers—all represent figures of passage and transformation. The transition between elements—from the aquatic to the aerial, from the underground to the terrestrial—is one of the central themes of the artist's work. 

From archaic ages to futuristic civilizations, between dinosaurs and child astronauts, Appriou produces visions on the edge of psychedelia, mixing pop culture and mythologies from Greek and Egyptian antiquity to science fiction. His sculpture combines the allegorical and the sensual, leaving his fingerprints visible on the material. He weaves a paradoxical narrative that unites the past and the future, the ideal and the perceptible, in a series of hallucinatory ecstasies.  

Appriou’s work has been exhibited at the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris; the Palais de Tokyo, Paris; the Fondation Lafayette Anticipations, Paris; Musée du Louvre, Paris; the Fondation Vincent van Gogh, Arles; the Musée des Abattoirs, Toulouse; the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris; the Consortium Museum, Dijon; The Villa Medici, Roma, the Biennale de Lyon and the 7th Jing'an International Sculpture Project, Shanghai. He was invited by the Public Art Fund to present a group of sculptures at the Doris C. Freedman Plaza at the southeast entrance to Central Park in New York, at the Château de Versailles and at the Vienna Biennale. In 2023, he was choosen by Donatien Grau to engrave a copper plate and produce an etching, La Constellation du Louvre, 2023 that entered the Musée du Louvre collection. His works have been the subject of solo gallery exhibitions at Perrotin, Shanghai; Jan Kaps, Cologne; Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich, Vienna and New York; Kaikai Kiki, Tokyo; C L E A R I N G, New York, Brussels and Los Angeles and MASSIMODECARLO, London and Hong Kong.

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education

2010
École régionale des Beaux-Arts, Rennes, France

solo shows

2023
- La constellation du Louvre, Musée du Louvre, Centre Dominique-Vivant Denon, Paris, France
- Gemini, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Vienna
- Magnetic, Massimo de Carlo, Hong Kong

2022
- Liquid metal dream, Perrotin Shanghai, China
- Flamingo Soup, Clearing, Los Angeles, USA
- Ophelia, Massimo de Carlo, London, UK
- Un Odissea, ArtClub, Villa Medicis, Rome, Italy

2021
- Les Soleils de Lucy, Jan Kaps, Cologne, Germany
- Event Horizon, Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
- Surface Horizon, Lafayette Anticipations, Paris, France
- Fire On The Sea, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zürich, Switzerland

2020
- Very rich hours, Clearing New York, Brooklyn, USA

2019
- Seabed, Le Consortium, Dijon, France
- The Horses, (organized by Public Art Fund), Doris C. Freedman Plaza, Central Park, New York, USA

2018
- November, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich, Switzerland
- Griffe, langue, rose et écailles, Clearing, Brussels, Belgium
- Open Space # 1, (Curated by Ludovic Delalande & Claire Staebler), Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, France

2017
- Abalon, Clearing, New York, USA
- Harvest, Jan Kaps, Cologne, Germany

2016
- Raspberry Rising, Clearing, Brussels, Belgium

2015
- Salt Crystals, Jan Kaps, Cologne, Germany

2014
- Sonde D’arc-en-taupe, Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France
- Juillet, Sculpture D’extérieur, Vent of Forêts, Fresnes-au-Mont, France

2013
- Moyen Âge, Ecole Municipale of the Beaux Arts, Gallery Edouard Manet, Gennevilliers, France
- Keymousse Éditions, Vitrine, Brussels, Belgium

2012
- Ginger Succubes, Vitrine, Air De Paris, Paris, France
- Kinkyramyk, Piacé-le-radieux, Bézar-le Corbusier, Piacé, France

group shows

2023
- Nocturnal Ballads, Perrotin Shanghai, China
- Au hasard des oiseaux, Biennale de Saint-Paul de Vence, Saint-Paul de Vence, France
- Prospettive/Perspectives, Langhe Monferrato Roergo, Piedmont, Italy
- Galerie Eva Presenhuber X Taxa Seoul, South Korea
- MAIDEN VOYAGE, C L E A R I N G, New York, USA
- Philara Foundation, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Sammlung Boros, Berlin, Germany
- Prospettive/Perspectives, Langhe Monferrato Roergo, Piedmont, Italy
- Tie To All The Earth, Teagan Art Space, Beijing, China
- French Delights, Bodrum Loft, Bodrum, Turkey
- 7th Jing'an International Sculpture Project, Shanghai, China
- Chicago Architecture Biennial, Chicago Culture Center, Chicago, USA
- Printed Matters, Consortium Museum, Dijon, France

2022
- Les Portes du possible. Art & science-fiction, Centre Pompidou-Metz, Metz, France
- Earthing, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Waldmannstrasse, Zurich, Switzerland

2021
- La Bohème, Alfonso Artiaco, Naples, Italy
- ArtZuid, Amsterdam Sculpture Biennale, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Often Vary Never Change, Clearing, New York, USA
- Souffler de son Souffle, Fondation Vincent Van Gogh, Arles, France
- Bijoux, Fitzpatrick Gallery, Paris, France
- La Dame à la licorne, médiévale et si contemporaine, Les Abattoirs, Toulouse, France
- The Dreamers, 58th October Salon, Belgrade Biennial, Belgrade, Serbia
- Portraiture One Century Apart, Massimo De Carlo, Milan, Italy
- I've Seen Things You People Would'nt Believe, FRAC Corsica, Corse, France
- Jean-Marie Appriou, Sam Falls, Shara Hughes, Galerie Eva Presenhuber & Galerie 75, Paris, France
- Grand Ménage, Clearing, Paris, France
- Superamas, Clearing, Brussels, Belgium
- The Imaginary Sea, Fondation Carmignac, Ile de Porquerolles, Hyères, France

2020
- Anima Mundi, Abbaye Saint-Victor, Marseille, France
- Possédé·e·s - Deviance, Performance, Resistance. MO.CO. Panacée, Montpellier, France
- Dream Baby Dream, Haus Mödrath - Räume für Kunst, Kerpen, Germany

2019
- Là où les eaux se mêlent, La biennale de Lyon, Lyon, France
- Les Chemins du Sud, Musée régional d'art contemporain Occitanie, Sérignan, France
- Bêtes de Scène, Fondation Villa Datris, L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, France
- Parfum d’épines, Phillips X Vo Curations, Paris, France
- Cicatrices, VO Curations, London, UK
- L'âge de raison, Clearing, Brussels, Belgium

2018
- Childhood: Another Banana Day for the Dream Fish, Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France
- Deux sens du décoratif, Centre d'art contemporain Passerelle, Brest, France
- Smooth Transitions, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich, Switzerland
- Here Here – Das Ich Und Alles Anderen, Braunsfelder, Cologne, Germany
- Group Show, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich, Switzerland 

2017
- How It’s Made, Carl Kostyal, Stockholm, Sweden
- Voyage D’hiver, Château De Versailles Spectacles and Palais De Tokyo, Versailles, France
- Artificial Tears. Singularity & Humanness – a Speculation, Vienna Biennale, Mak, Vienna, Austria
- The Leftovers, Simon Lee Gallery, New York, USA
- Medusa, Musee d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France
- De Nature En Sculpture, Villa Datris, L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, France

2016
- Lanzarote, Union Pacific, London, UK
- Streams of Warm Impermanence, David Roberts Art Foundation, London, UK
- Pastoral Myths, La Loge, Brussels, Belgium
- History Made By Artists, CLEARING, New York, USA

2015
- The Great Depression, Balice Hertling, Paris, France
- L’usage des formes, Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France
- Mon Horizonatalité, Untilthen Gallery, Paris France
- Deep Screen, Centre d’Art Contemporain, Parc Saint Léger, Pougues-les-Eaux, France

2014
- La Solitude, Astrup Firnley Museum of Modern Art, Oslo, Norway
- Elusive Earths, Établissement d’En Face Projects, Brussels, Belgium
- Let’s Play, Galeries du Cloitre, École des Beaux-Arts, Biennale d’Art Contemporaine de Rennes, Rennes, France
- Formes Simples, Cristallerie de Saint-Louis-lès-Bitche, France
- L’Écho / Ce qui Sépare, Hab Galerie à Nantes et Frac des Pays-de-la-Loire, Carquefou, France

2013
- I’ve Lost My Marbles, Athens, Greece
- No Fear, No Shame, No Confusion,Triangle France, Marseille, France
- Galerie le Minotaure, Paris, France
- Prix Sciences Po Pour L’Art Contemporain, Paris, France

2012
- Pavillon de Chasse, Galerie Semiose, Paris, France
- Etrange Été, Galerie White Project, Paris, France
- 57éme Salon de Montrouge, Le Beffroi, Montrouge, France
- BYOB, Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France
- Sur un pied, Galerie Sémiose, Paris, France

2011
- Nul Ptyx, Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris, France

public collections

Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, FR
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, FR
Musée du Louvre, FR
CNAP, Paris, FR
FRAC Ile de France, FR
FRAC Corse, FR
Zabludowicz Collection, London, UK
Borros Collection, Berlin, DE
Sammlung Philara, Düsseldorf, DE
Vanhaerents Art Collection, Brussels, BE
Long Museum, Shanghai, CN
 

Public commissions

Permanent installation, ENS Saclay, France
Permanent installation, Poitiers, France
Permanent installation, Rennes, France
Permanent installation, Neviglie, Italy
Temporary installation, Public Art Fund, New York, USA (2019)

  • December 30, 2022
    Modern Weekly — 1 PAGE

  • December 25, 2022
    Madame Figaro — 3 PAGES

  • June 1, 2022
    Geste/s — 6 PAGES

  • August 11, 2021
    Télérama — 3 PAGES

  • January 26, 2020
    Le Monde — 2 PAGES

2023

ELMGREEN & DRAGSET, JR, Koak, Jean-Marie APPRIOU, Iván ARGOTE, Daniel ARSHAM, Genesis BELANGER, Anna-Eva BERGMAN, Sophie CALLE, Julian CHARRIÈRE, Johan CRETEN, Jean-Philippe DELHOMME, Mathilde DENIZE, Lionel ESTÈVE, Jens FÄNGE, Bernard FRIZE, Laurent GRASSO, Vivian GREVEN, Hans HARTUNG, Charles HASCOËT, Thilo HEINZMANN, John HENDERSON, Leslie HEWITT, Gregor HILDEBRANDT, Dora JERIDI, Susumu KAMIJO, Bharti KHER, Klara KRISTALOVA, Georges MATHIEU, Takashi MURAKAMI, Sophia NARRETT, Katherina OLSCHBAUR, Danielle ORCHARD, Jean-Michel OTHONIEL, Paola PIVI, Gabriel RICO, Claude RUTAULT, Emily Mae SMITH, Jesús Rafael SOTO, Josh SPERLING, Tatiana TROUVÉ, Xavier VEILHAN, Bernar VENET, Pieter VERMEERSCH, LEE Bae, QI Zhuo, SHIM Moon-Seup

October 16, 2023 - November 10, 2023

paris

60 RUE DE TURENNE 75003 PARIS
2BIS AVENUE MATIGNON 75008 PARIS

Matignon - October+ group show

Chiho AOSHIMA, Jean-Marie APPRIOU, Rao FU, Laurent GRASSO, Gregor HILDEBRANDT, Klara KRISTALOVA, Farhad MOSHIRI, Christiane POOLEY, Mark RYDEN, Yang ZHAO, CHANG Yachin, CHEN Ke, MENG Yangyang, Yves LALOY

September 15, 2023 - October 26, 2023

Shanghai

3/F, 27 Hu Qiu Road, Huangpu District

Nocturnal Ballads

Jean-Marie APPRIOU, Sophie CALLE, Johan CRETEN, Jean-Philippe DELHOMME, Jens FÄNGE, Laurent GRASSO, Hans HARTUNG, Thilo HEINZMANN, Gregor HILDEBRANDT, JR, Klara KRISTALOVA, LEE Bae, Gabriel DE LA MORA, Takashi MURAKAMI, Tavares STRACHAN, Pieter VERMEERSCH

January 10, 2023 - April 5, 2023

paris

2BIS AVENUE MATIGNON 75008 PARIS

Salon Perrotin Matignon

2022

Jean-Marie APPRIOU

November 4, 2022 - December 17, 2022

Shanghai

3/F, 27 Hu Qiu Road, Huangpu District

Liquid Metal Dream

"Liquid Metal Dream" at Perrotin Shanghai

"Liquid Metal Dream" at Perrotin Shanghai

Jean-Marie APPRIOU

"LIQUID METAL DREAM" AT PERROTIN SHANGHAI

"LIQUID METAL DREAM" AT PERROTIN SHANGHAI

Jean-Marie APPRIOU

PERROTIN

Closed for installation

Perrotin Los Angeles is closed for installation through Friday, April 5.

We look forward to welcoming you at our next exhibition, Art 2 by MSCHF. Join us at the opening on Saturday, April 6, 2024 between 3pm to 8pm! The exhibition will continue through June 1.
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