Image: Alécio de Andrade, Lygia Clark in Paris, 1970. Courtesy of the Estate
The Institut Giacometti in Paris resumes its École des modernités lecture series on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at 6:30 p.m., with a talk on Brazilian artists in Paris during the 1960s. Titled "Marins solitaires: Lygia Clark, les Brésiliens de Paris et le cinétisme" (Solitary Sailors: Lygia Clark, the Brazilians of Paris and Kinetic Art), the lecture is given in French by the historian Killian Rauline, an agrégé in history and doctoral candidate at the École normale supérieure. It takes place at the Giacometti Lab, 9 rue Victor-Schoelcher, in the 14th arrondissement, and is streamed live on YouTube. Admission is free with registration, both in person and online.
According to the foundation, the talk examines how Brazilian artists in Paris moved from the role of the cosmopolitan artist to that of the exile. While the "Latin Americans of Paris" enjoyed considerable success in the 1960s, the "Brazilians of Paris" never formed a group united by shared aesthetic principles. Rauline traces the period from Lygia Clark's arrival in the city in 1964, the year of Brazil's military coup, to Hélio Oiticica's brief stay in May 1969, and considers how the country's increasingly authoritarian turn changed these artists' position.
The École des modernités invites art historians and international curators once a month to shed new light on the history of modern art. From September 2026 to June 2027, the historian, critic and curator Devika Singh is its scientific director.
