Seychellois artist takes part in prestigious art exhibition in Paris |19 October 2022

The winner of this year’s Biennale for Contemporary Arts, Ryan Chetty, leaves Seychelles today for France, where he will be taking part in the Art Shopping Exhibition located in the prestigious ‘Carrousel du Louvre’, in the centre of Paris from October 22 to 23.

The 33-year-old has been invited along with two other winners of the Biennale for Contemporary Arts, Barry Gertrude and Juliette Zelime aka JADEZ. However due to budgetary constraints, he will be travelling solo to Paris to represent his work and that of his two colleagues.

Speaking to Seychelles NATION the artist described this exposure as a privilege and honour.

“It’s a privilege especially since it is at ‘Carrousel du Louvre’. I did not expect my first international exhibition to be there so this is a huge achievement. I believe it will open doors to many other international exhibitions that I am targeting,” said Mr Chetty.

Each artist has been given a space of one and a half metre to exhibit their work and Mr Chetty said he will be displaying his work made out of layers and Perspex under the theme ‘Unity and Diversity’.

“I am depicting the journey of immigrants who have to flee their countries due to various challenges, be it famine or war, with the hope of finding refuge, peace or a new home in another country,” explained Mr Chetty.

The trip has been facilitated by the Creative Seychelles Agency, whose main objective is to promote Seychellois artists and facilitate their entry and exposure into the professional and international arena. It is the first time that the agency is supporting the participation of an artist on this European platform. He has also been assisted by the National Arts Council.

Mr Chetty has expressed his deep gratitude to all organisations and individuals who have been supportive during his twelve-year career, especially Vijay Patel, who fully sponsored his arts scholarship and his prize at the recent Biennale for Contemporary Arts.

More than 15, 000 visitors are expected to visit the Art Shopping Exhibition at the ‘Carrousel du Louvre’, which is an underground shopping mall. The name refers to two nearby sites, the Louvre Museum and the Place du Carrousel, which are two popular attractions in Paris.

Ryan Chetty is expected in the country on October 26.

Patsy Canaya