Manifesta purposely strives to keep its distance from what are often seen as the dominant centres of artistic production, instead seeking fresh and fertile terrain for the mapping of a new cultural topography.
Michel Houellebecq, FR
For this project, in collaboration with doctor Henry Perschak, French writer Michel Houellebecq put his head, his right hand, his heart and his lungs through a panoply of tests. Handouts of electrocardiograms and blood analyses were available at the clinic offering an intimate and rare look inside these symbolic parts of the famous author’s body. This project was a response to the criticism the author received after his 2015 book ”Submission”. In this book, he projected that Paris and France wouldbe under an Islamic regime in 2027 which provoked the question,“Is Michel Houellebecq OK?”