beaux livres : photo, architecture, art

As the spearhead of our consumer societies, brands inspire both enthusiasm and hatred. They fascinate, they irritate, and they permeate every aspect of society. Whether reviled or cult-like, they constitute a rich and abundant resource at the heart of global economies.

Who can imagine a world without brands? But who can ignore the frenzy and overheating of a system in which they are both actors and vectors?
Most visual artists have distanced themselves from the idea that they could be part of modernity and triumphant industry. When they engage with brands, they offer observations, sometimes, and often scathing critiques. Gilles Deléris and Denis Gancel wanted to include in their essay the works of artists who have always known how to engage with brands, knowing how to bring them back to their true nature and their vulnerabilities. This unique collection, drawn primarily from the artistic output of recent years, extends their analysis and offers a parallel reading of the book.

The text, taking the form of an aphorism, avoids any pontificating approach and succeeds, with lightness and humor, in addressing, with all due seriousness, the major societal shifts hidden behind brands. Thus, throughout the pages, a healthy friction develops between the work of practitioners, advertisers, designers, communicators, and visual artists.

Finally, this curious object, an unlikely cross between a missal and the Little Red Book, is a way of staging the dialogue that animates the professional lives of Gilles Deléris and Denis Gancel. In Ecce Logo, they dissect what constitutes a brand and beyond, delivering a genuine analysis of our society today while anticipating that of tomorrow.

Works by artists: Jonathan Barnbrook, BP, Francis Baudevin, Valérie Belin, Frank Breuer, Alain Bublex, Pierre Buraglio, César, Soasig Chamaillard, Claude Closky, Jacob Dahlgreen, Wim Delvoye, Raymond Depardon, Robert Doisneau, Elmgreen & Dragset, Massimo Gammacurta, Carl Grossberg, Wang Guangyi, Andréas Gursky, H5 (François Alaux, Hervé de Crécy, Ludovic Houplain), Raymond Hains, Cyril Hatt, Jasper Johns, Olga Kisseleva, Barbara Kruger, Bertrand Lavier, Li Lihong, Mathieu Mercier, Nicolas Moulin, Claes Oldenburg, Martin Parr, Bruno Peinado, Renzo Piano, Pablo Picasso, Pierre et Gilles, Fabrice Praeger, Richard Prince, Ed Ruscha, Tom Sachs, Christian Schad, Franck Scurti, Lee Stoetzel, Taroop & Glabel, Gavin Turk, Andy Warhol, Erwin Wurm, Zevs

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