Noms inconnus

MBAL EMERGING TALENT AWARD

First there are words – words about a crime – then an image. The reading of the texts is chilling as they all refer to feminicides. Zoé Aubry (Switzerland, 1993) is the first winner of MBAL Emerging Talent Award, following the last edition of the Triennial of Contemporary Prints, showcasing the work of art students in Switzerland.

Noms inconnus is not only a publication but also an installation designed for MBAL by the student at HEAD in Geneva. Nothing is fictitious about this work: the artist is only reporting the terrible crimes that take place all too often. Their number is alarming: in France, the country on which Zoé Aubry focuses, a woman is killed every three days by her (ex) husband or boyfriend. In Noms inconnus, the identity of the victim (name and age) and the perpetrator are carefully reported, as are the date of the crime, the location, the criminal’s sentence and the link between the two. The artist has collected information and newspaper clippings, investigated and documented the crimes. Strangulation, punching, drowning, burning, stabbing, etc. can all be found in these images, which result from the artist’s research on the crimes. Texts and images then become one, aiming at breaking our indifference when reading about these crimes in newspapers, without really being touched by them. Through this socially committed work, Zoé Aubry wishes to raise awareness both among individuals and society as a whole. These feminicides should indeed deeply disturb us. That is why the artist is dedicated to paying tribute to women whose life ended in such a dramatic way and whose names are mentioned all too briefly in the media.

Trained as a photographer at ECAL, Zoé Aubry is currently studying at HEAD in Geneva. Noms inconnuswas awarded MBAL Emerging Talent Award, created at the Triennial of Contemporary Prints in 2018. She is the first winner of this newly created award, the judges were: Marco Costantini (Curator of MUDAC, Lausanne), Christian Egger (Director of Galerie C, Neuchâtel), Julie Enckell Julliard (Head of the Cultural Development Department of HEAD, Geneva) and Karine Tissot (Director of the Contemporary Art Centre, Yverdon-les-Bains).