Schwabe

Francis Alys - Fabiola Schwabe

This catalogue is published on the occasion of the exhibition, 12 March - 28 August 2011, of Francis Alys: Fabiola, organised by Schaulager at Haus zum Kirschgarten, an extravagant Basel museum of domestic life. For the exhibition, Francis Alys, born 1959 in Belgium, has installed his collection of over 370 amateur paintings and images of Saint Fabiola, found in flea markets and antique shops. The portraits are astonishingly similar, a wealth of copies all based on the same original painting from 1885 by the French realist Jean-Jacques Henner. They have been embedded in rooms which epitomize the living environment of the 19th-century, protestant haut-bourgeoisie. In this location, the swarm of Fabiola images represents a subversive yet subtle intervention in the museum's structure and play on the atmosphere the historic rooms seek to bring to life. The large-format photo-spread includes views of the exhibition at Haus zum Kirschgarten, providing a visual tour. Essays by the exhibition's curator, Lynne Cooke (New York/Madrid) and Dario Gamboni (Geneva), a renowned expert on Francis Alys' work, describe the nature of the installation at Haus zum Kirschgarten and discuss Alys' creative strategy. The catalogue also includes a comprehensive bibliography.