Manuel Chantre & the Desacralization of the Cell Phone

Imagine that your cell-phone photo and video data were taken and an exhibition were created from them. That is what Manuel Chantre proposes with Monday, March 11, 2013, as part of the Biennale internationale d’art numérique (BIAN). The multidisciplinary artist developed this idea during a school residency. He used a memory card to attract the attention of distracted young people. Manuel suggested making a sculpture with the data from a phone he had found. At first, the young people reacted badly; they were afraid it might be their device, or said the data was private. He says he intended to create a situation that provokes people. He does not want to embarrass anyone, but rather to demonstrate the reuse of personal data that washes up in the sea of the web and to begin a reflection. He is very interested in the technological relationship with society, memory and ethics. With Monday, March 11, 2013, Manuel Chantre explores the desacralization of the cell phone. This popular-culture object is diverted; the machine is dissected to create a dialogue. Through the sculptures, videos and engravings in the series, he casts a critical and poetic eye on the trust we place in the personal data stored by mobile phones. The title is taken from the date of the last photo found on the memory

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card. This is the artist’s second participation in the BIAN. He says the event is essential for connecting with the public and bringing together artists who present quality works. The BIAN builds a bridge between digital art and more traditional visual art. It is interesting to open everything up and gain recognition beyond technology. Manuel Chantre is known for having presented his work in internationally renowned institutions. He says he loves the digital milieu. Compared with other countries, our state has chosen to fund several cultural organizations. The result is a strong network and enviable know-how, such as Moment Factory, Pixmob and Cirque du Soleil. Our milieu is healthy; he has no desire to go elsewhere to produce his projects. Monday, March 11, 2013 generated many reactions from the public. Take advantage of the last week to see the exhibition at the Bibliothèque de Parc-Extension until June 19.