Jimmy Robert

Investigating the possible connections between death and disco, Jimmy Robert’s performance starts by examining two bodies in the context of club dancing. How are bodies visible? What is the role of desire? What’s left when the party is over? At the heart of this dissection of the cultural codes and uses of nightclubs – these spaces where rhythm, sensuality and underground culture blossom – the vernacular language of the dancefloor emerges. With Joie noire, the visual artist and performer proposes a sharp and meditative reflection on the legacy of the 1980’s, and particularly the impact of AIDS on activism, especially when it comes to questions like gender or race. Dedicated to Ian White (1971-2013), a performer, writer and curator Jimmy Robert had worked with, and whose work challenged institutional art productions, the piece also subtly and flamboyantly highlights the influence of this artist on contemporary performance.

Jimmy Robert was born in Guadeloupe (FR) in 1975 and currently lives and works in Berlin. Robert was the subject of a mid-career survey at Nottingham Contemporary in 2020, which travelled to Museion, Bolzano and CRAC Occitanie, Sète. Recent solo exhibitions include Frammenti, Thomas Dane Naples; la musique dans la chambre, Künstlerhaus Bremen (2022); The Hunterian, Glasgow (2021); La Synagogue De Delme, France (2018); Museum M, Leuven (2017); Power Plant, Toronto (2013); Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (2012); and Jeu de Paume, Paris (2012). Robert’s performances have also been presented at Tate Britain, London; MoMA, New York and Migros Museum, Zurich. His most recent performance ‘Joie Noire’ premiered in 2019 at KW Institute of Contemporary Art, Berlin and travelled to Kaaitheater, Brussels. Ongoing solo exhibitions include Kunsthalle Baden-Baden in October 2022 and Moderna Museet, Malmo in Spring 2023.