«Les lobbys auront-ils la peau des abeilles ?» Performance by Anne-Lise Coste (Uruk)

Venue: In the exhibition

Anne-Lise Coste (Uruk) responded to the Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst's invitation to be part of the exhibition ‘Accumulation - On Collecting, Growth and Excess’ by proposing to spray a sentence on one of the walls in the exhibition space. This performative act is deliberately reminiscent of spontaneous protest graffiti in public space.

Anne-Lise Coste uses drawing, painting and spray techniques as a means of expression to directly and immediately draw attention to social grievances with gestures and language. Her often text-based works combine poetry with political criticism in a graphic gesture. Her works can often be read as manifestos that deal with the injustices that people encounter in everyday life: Fascism, male chauvinism, the patriarchy, racism, police violence and all forms of oppression, but also a lack of empathy and solidarity. Yet this rebellious aspect never lacks a certain irony and an eye for the joyful, loving moments in life.

Anne-Lise Coste has recently begun to focus intensively on writing and to integrate public readings into her practice. For her performance ‘ Les lobbys auront-ils la peau des abeilles ? ‘ (Will the lobbies kill the bees?) at the Migros Museum resulted in the following lines:

DESPITE THE LACK OF SUPPORT FROM THE OTHER SIDE
WE CAN DO IT AND GET THE ONE DAY IN A PHRASE
YOU ARE SO LARGE
YOU ARE SO GIANT
YOU ARE SO GIGANTIC GIRL
ASPARAGUS POTATOES TOMATOES AND ONIONS
WILL GROW AND BE ABLE TO WRITE A NEW SONG
CHANGE OUR WORDS AND MAKE UNSURE HOW TO APPREHEND THE TRUTH
THE FALSE IN THE TRUTH
WE DONT KNOW
WE DONT KNOW
AND WE THANK THE UNKNOWN


Anne-Lise Coste (Uruk) (*1973 in Marignane near Marseille, France) studied in Marseille and Zurich. After many years in Zurich and several years in New York, she now lives in Paris. She has had solo exhibitions at the Dortmunder Kunstverein, the CRAC in Sète, the Salomon Fondation in Annecy and the Kunsthaus Baselland, among others.

• No registration required
• The event is free of charge

The event takes place as part of Zurich Art Weekend 2025.