Suzon by Raimundas Malašauskas

Description

Suzon — both a reprint of Raimundas Malašauskas sold-out book Paper Exhibitions from 2012 and a new collection of writings by the author that have happened since — offers a window onto Malašauskas’ worldview, based on collective improvisation, congregation and continuous drift. It includes essays, exhibition guides, personal letters, song lyrics, an opening speech and a cocktail recipe – together offering a glimpse of what perhaps in a few years we will look back upon as L’esprit du temps.

The book’s title refers to the woman who was the model for Édouard Manet’s A Bar at the Folies-Bergère (1882), a painting that fascinated Malašauskas from childhood on. “At some point I came to realize that many of my writings came from a similar starting point to Suzon’s work at the bar – most were made to order. As a writer, I sometimes tend to misplace an order and prepare a surprise drink or dish instead. You can think of the writings in Suzon as returns or requests; some were prepared as suggestions.”

As part of the one-time residency project …, een dag, een nacht, een dag, … Raimundas Malašauskas also realized a limited edition in five versions, consisting of a letter to the reader in the form of a dry-point etching and a wrapper with a UV-printed drawing. These will be presented during two public presentations in February 2025 on location in Brussels.

About RAIMUNDAS MALAŠAUSKAS: When growing up in Vilnius, then capital of Soviet Lithuania, Raimundas Malašauskas wanted to become a chef on a trans-oceanic ship but ended up studying art history and theory at Vilnius Academy of Arts. He was particularly drawn to the period of Mannerism in the sixteenth century but ended up writing a study of art criticism of the 1970s and ’80s.

Following a period as a curator at the Contemporary Art Centre in Vilnius from 1995—2006, he has worked itinerantly ever since, driven by what he describes as ‘intellectual wanderlust’ with extended periods of time spent in Bangkok, Cairo, Brussels, Delhi, Hong Kong, Mexico, Paris, and San Francisco, among other places. Writing has been a constant companion during these journeys — a means of both curating exhibitions and experiencing daily life.