« La Vie coye » HU Jiamin

Hu Jiamin is a Chinese-born artist based in Lyon, working in both painting and video. He began his artistic practice in a village in Yunnan province, an experience in rural China that profoundly influenced his belief in the social responsibility of artists. In 2017, the censorship and destruction of his mural in Shenzhen, and his subsequent detention during the Shenzhen and Hong Kong Biennale of Urbanism and Architecture, led him to reflect on the relationship between art and dissent. His work unfolds across various formats—from small-scale political ex-voto paintings on wooden panels to large-scale canvases.

His attention to the small and mundane things that our habits render invisible serves both as an aesthetic gaze and a political vision. His works express how globalized history is embodied in our lives, depicting the tension between the simplicity and fragility of everyday existence and the inexorability of the political forces that underpin it.

Opening on friday 13th November at 6:30pm

Réseau 12/12/12 MAPRAA / 6 ème édition 2026

As part of the 18th Lyon Contemporary Art Biennale, we are presenting the 6th edition of the MAPRAA 12/12/12 network. 12 artists / 12 venues / 12 departments.

Following the same principle as previous editions, during the Biennale and in connection and ‘resonance’ with it, MAPRAA is reviving this network of exhibitions across the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, featuring artists who have taken part in the MAPRAA exhibition cycle. However, this year, 12/12/12 – taking place against a particularly challenging backdrop for the visual arts – has been scaled back to 7/7/7.

Unfortunately, some venues that usually take part are not included in this edition. Their absence in no way reflects a lack of interest or commitment, but rather highlights the precarious realities facing many independent cultural venues today. Many venues are currently going through periods of uncertainty that limit their ability to take part in this kind of initiative, despite their fundamental role in the artistic ecosystem.

This programme therefore celebrates not only the venues that are present, but also those that have now disappeared or those that have been prevented from taking part, yet which continue nonetheless to embody the vitality and resilience of a cultural landscape that needs to be recognised, supported and preserved.

Alain LOVATO, President of MAPRAA