Francis Alÿs: Ricochets
2024Private View: Francis Alÿs
The Belgian artist brings his Children’s Games to London’s Barbican for an immersive celebration of the universal ingenuity of play
Since 1999, Belgian artist Francis Alÿs has engaged with the universality of play while travelling the world, documenting the ingenuity of children’s games across different global contexts. Illuminating the limitlessness of children’s imaginations – transcending war and challenging circumstances – the games become intimate portraits of childhood against varied socio-political landscapes, with play as an invisible thread.
From ‘musical chairs’ in Mexico, to ‘leapfrog’ in Iraq, ‘jump rope’ in Hong Kong, and ‘wolf and lamb’ in Afghanistan, Alÿs’ decades spanning Children’s Games project becomes the center of Francis Alÿs: Ricochets – an immersive exhibition that turns London’s Barbican into a cinematic playground. In the first presentation of the video works in the UK, multi-screen installations construct a dialogue between distinct and distant regions, alongside a new body of animated films, depicting the simple gestures of hand games.
For a film by Catherine Hyland, created with the Barbican, Alÿs explores how games and creativity enable children to interact with their environments – while creating distance from nuances beyond their understanding. By triggering memories and establishing a commonality among viewers, Alÿs expands on the power of play as an invitation to enter a new dimension, and a means of escape from the conflicts that permeate the adult world.
Francis Alÿs: Ricochets is on display at the Barbican Art Gallery until 1 September 2024.
Exhibition
