The idea of living and working with your partner in the same space strikes fear into the hearts of most couples, but legendary graphic designer Peter Saville and German artist Anna Blessmann are celebrating the power of cohabiting and collaboration with their first joint exhibition – at the Champagne-Ardenne FRAC (Fonds régional d'art contemporain) in Reims.
The couple, who met in a gallery in Berlin in 2001, now live and work together in London, going under the name Anna + Peter. Their exhibition Swing Project 1 takes as its starting point the premise that in a world where all artistic disciplines are now so intrinsically linked they are indistinguishable, contemporary art must now be approached as a philosophy rather than in terms of form.
The exhibition combines Saville’s acute observations on contemporary society and visual culture with Blessmann’s more sensual, physical preoccupations. It also delivers a sharp critique of a modern society wholly dedicated to consumption and communication, reminding us that ‘Nothing useless can be truly beautiful’.
Purple Box, by Anna + Peter, 2010
Photography by Isabelle Giovacchini
Strap-in Mirror Corner, by Anna + Peter, 2010
Photography by Isabelle Giovacchini
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