Under the auspices of Mehdi Ben Cheik, guest curator and artistic director, the exhibition reaffirms the central place held by street art in the history of Paris.
Seventy-five French and international artists will occupy the spaces of the Petit Palais with over two hundred works on display.
The exhibition begins in the spaces devoted to the permanent collection and visitors can admire several previously unseen works by D*Face, Invader, El Seed, EvazéSir, Hopare, Mark Jenkins, Conor Harrington, Maye, Sun7, and Maxime Siau. These resonate with the museum’s collections and follow in the footsteps of the creations by Seth and Inti, which have been incorporated into the collections since 2024 (donation in progress). The public can then discover the spectacular display in the Salle Concorde. Renewing with the tradition of the nineteenth-century salon—which showcased the artists of the day and encouraged the emergence of new avant-gardes—WE ARE [still] HERE positions itself as part of that legacy: i.e., a creative practice writing its own history. The exhibition also provides a dynamic and compelling overview of the current contemporary art scene, skilfully and impressively demonstrating that art is, more than ever, in motion.
This year, the French scene is given pride of place and features forty-three artists, including Invader, Seth, eL Seed, EvazéSir, Hopare, Miss Van, L’Atlas, Shaka, Bom.K, Fafi, Jace, Vinie, Seize, Sun7, Nasty, Lek & Sowat, Le CyKlop, Romain Froquet, Kan, Jana & JS, Fenx, FKDL, and Mosko. They are joined by several major figures from the international scene, such as Shepard Fairey, Swoon, Vhils, El Mac, D*Face, Conor Harrington, Faile, Inti, Add Fuel, Tristan Eaton, Hera, ROA, and Hush.
WE ARE [still] HERE is a portrait of our times. The artists appropriate contemporary codes to engage in a subtle dialogue with the museum and its collections. The strength of the street art movement lies in its ability to accurately embrace its surroundings. Through a range of techniques and varied artistic worlds, several key themes that have shaped art history emerge—themes that continue to exist even in our contemporary reality.
This event has now become an important fixture at the Petit Palais. It is proof that Paris continues to do what it has always done best: revealing a movement and accompanying its development.
In a summer that is particularly rich in terms of street art in the French capital, WE ARE [still] HERE celebrates the vitality of a multicultural movement, firmly rooted in its time, and with a strong socio-political conscience. Urban art is, by nature, a popular art form. The works brought together at the Petit Palais find a setting aligned with those same values of accessibility, the sharing of knowledge, and openness that define the genre.
A special app guides visitors as they explore the artworks and artists through the choice of interactive content, further enriching the exhibition’s immersive dimension.
THE COMPLETE LIST OF PARTICIPATING ARTISTS:
ADD FUEL, AKACHA, ARDIF, BOM.K, BTOY, CLET ABRAHAM, CODEX URBANUS, CONOR HARRINGTON, D*FACE, DACRUZ, DAN23, DAVID DE LA MANO, DEYAA, EL MAC, EL SEED, EVAZESIR, FAFI, FAILE, FENX, FKDL, HERA, HOM, HOPARE, HOROR, HUSH, INTI, INVADER, JACE, JAN KALAB, JANA & JS, KAN, KATRE, L’ATLAS, LE CYKLOP, LEK & SOWAT, LOGAN HICKS, MADAME, MARKO93, MARK JENKINS, MAXIME SIAU, MAYE, M-CITY, MIAZ BROTHERS, MISS VAN, MOSKO, NAJAH ZARBOUT, NASTY, NICOLAS PANAYOTOU, NILKO, ORTICANOODLES, PAKONE, POSE, REA, RERO, RETNA, RETRO, ROA, ROMAIN FROQUET, SAMAN & SASAN, SANER, SEIZE, SALMA MESTIRI, SETH, SHAKA, SHEPARD FAIREY, SPEEDY GRAPHITO, STEW, SUN7, SWOON, THEAZEE, TIM CONLON, TRISTAN EATON, VINNIE, VHILS, YSEULT YZ DIGAN
Curator:
Mehdi Beh Cheikh, guest curator and artistic director