Nuit électrique: Pierre & Gilles' neon-lit photo exhibition at Galerie Templon - final days

Ready for an electric (art) jolt? Pierre et Gilles, the virtuosos of offbeat portraiture, return to Galerie Templon with Nuit électrique, a new photo exhibition that shakes up codes and lights up the night, from September 3 to October 26, 2024. After a career spanning over forty years, the legendary duo prove that they have lost none of their audacity. Blending painting and photography with unrivalled mastery, they plunge us into a world where kitsch flirts with the sublime, where every detail tells a story that is at once funny, dark and profoundly human.

In this new series, Pierre et Gilles explore the night from every angle: from clubs (like the Palace), funfairs and cabarets, to the soul. Their slightly provocative characters, from tattooed sailors to fallen angels, are revealed in intense neon light, creating a striking contrast between the festive appearance and the melancholy background of their works. The nude or rhinestone-clad bodies, the sometimes enticing, sometimes lost looks, make up a gallery of portraits that play with the codes of desire, dreams and trouble.

Pierre et Gilles don't stop there, however, and go so far as to present themselves in two surprising self-portraits: one, tinged with melancholy, shows them separated, while the other portrays them as smiling retirees, like elderly rock stars. This skilfully balanced ambiguity, where humor rubs shoulders with gravity, is the signature of the duo, who never cease to reinvent themselves.

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And to complete the picture, two of their icons join the party: Amanda Lear, as the diva of boulevard theater, and Isabelle Huppert, imperial as Mary Stuart. These magnified muses underline the bold work on lighting, a nod to resistance in the face of passing time.

As undisputed icons of the LGBTQI+ scene, Pierre et Gilles don't just reflect diversity: they celebrate it. This series, like their careers, is a tribute to a resilient community, an ode to love in all its forms. Exploring themes such as identity, marginality and resistance in the face of adversity, they continue to give a powerful visual voice to those struggling to be themselves.

The free Electric Nightexhibition takes you on a journey into the heart of the night, where Pierre et Gilles illuminate the margins and remind us that art can be fun, poignant and resolutely unforgettable.