#Paris in July, 2026 - An Exhibition with Sophie Calle

Better late than never, so here another post about France for Paris in July, 2026, hosted by Emma @ Wordsanpeace. The reading has been slow but I have been to a couple of art exhibitions lately. This one is from the famous modern art museum in Denmark, Louisiana. I was invited by a friend of mine and we took the car, went over the bridge and drove over to this museum, beautifully situated along the eastern coast of Själland.

I am not very fond of modern art, but Louisiana tends to always have good exhibitions, that also I enjoy. This time we enjoyed two exhibitions; Sophie Calle and Lucian Freud. I had recently read something about Lucian Freud, so it just seemed perfect to have a look at his work.

We started with Sophie Calle, who is a French writer, photographer, installation and conceptual artist. She is known for using ‘arbitrary sets of constraints’. Her work depicts human vulnerability, and examines identity and intimacy. Quite unusual, she is also famous for her ‘detective-like tendency’ to follow strangers and investigate their private lives. It does not sound too nice, but, as I saw in the exhibition, it gives unexpected life to everyday events. Her photographic work often includes panels of text which she writes to fit into the photograph taken.

Needless to say, I have never heard of her, but must admit that I was totally fascinated by her art. She has had exhibitions all over the world and seems to be an artist with many talents, always renewing herself.

I was fascinated by her photographs, where, in front is a piece of material with a text on it, and when you lift the material, there is a photo. You read the text, and when you see the photo you are overwhelmed by the cleverness, seriousness and ideas that she comes up with. I could have taken a photo of each of these ‘paintings’ and there must have been around 30, but I only took one, and here it is.

The rest of the exhibition was as great. I have a weak spot for photographic exhibitions so this was a perfect one.

We continued to the Lucian Freud (1922-2011) one. I don’t know very much about his art, and I cannot say that all is to my liking. Freud specialised in figurative art and known as one of the foremost 20th century English portraitists. Early on he was influenced by surrealism which continued into expressionism. However, in the 1950s his paintings tended to go towards realism. He was a very private person and his portraits are mostly of friends and family.

The paintings often go towards, what I would call, horror like images or backgrounds. It is often interiors or urban landscapes. He is also famous for a close examination of the relationships between artist and model. There are many models who had to sit for long sittings, not always comfortable. Here is one of the paintings that I did like. It is a self portrait.

There are a few more permanent exhibitions to see. We had a nice lunch and there is a huge park where you can walk around in. It is a lovely museum to visit, so if you are passing by, it is well worth a visit.