Remarks: Face to Face

“The idea for the FACE group had been in my mind for at least two years before we first presented the project at the European Parliament in Brussels in 2008. In the beginning, although I knew that it wouldn’t be easy to bring together foundations working in different countries with varied approaches towards their activities, I also thought that it could be interesting to unite and highlight their mutual aims and their differences through long term collaboration, which over time would develop the foundations more and more as a collective. Then, I started talking to Dakis Joannou, Antoine de Galbert, and David Neuman about the idea; it all started from there. FACE founding members are all non-profit foundations established by private collectors who have set up public spaces for the production and promotion of contemporary art. The group came together to broaden and empower their activities collectively through new ambitious international projects.

The exhibition Investigations of a Dog, its curatorial concept inspired by the short story by Kafka, presents over 40 works from the collections of FACE partners and also offers an interesting insight into the ways the collections differ and how they can work together. The works were selected by the curators of the five foundations following a period of intense mutual feedback and tight collaboration. After being presented at the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo in Turin, the exhibition will begin a long tour to other FACE partner exhibition spaces and then on to a series of major European museums.

The FACE group looks forward to future projects, which will include supporting artists through the production and exhibition of new work, further exchange and experimentation with the collections and basically to draw on our individual skills to work together on new ideas for the arts.”

Investigations of a dog: Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin, 21 October 2009–7 February 2010