Measured cultural distance in the picture: 5 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  80 cm

22/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm

 

MEASUREMENT OF CULTURAL DISTANCE 

 

 

from the collection of 
Le Musée du RETARD /The Delay Museum 

MEASUREMENT OF CULTURAL DISTANCE by Thierry Geoffroy/COLONEL is a series of artworks from 2003, dealing with cultural differences and its representation in the media.

As part of his artistic tools, Thierry Geoffroy uses poetic measurement techniques combining the objective and personal interpretations of the subject matter. This unusual lens for investigation and capturing the world of today has a strong connection to the measurement of situations created par le hazard, where the chance plays an essential role; a clin d'oeil to "3 Standard Stoppages" by Marcel Duchamp. Furthermore, and similar to the way Marcel Broodthaers uses “Un Coup de Dés Jamais N'Abolira Le Hasard” (A throw of the dice will never abolish chance) by French poet Stéphane Mallarmé for deconstruction of poetic arrangements,

The series is part of Le Musée du RETARD/ The Delay Museum * and as such travels internationally.



In several occasions and in various countries, Thierry Geoffroy/COLONEL has been realizing the project MEASUREMENT OF CULTURAL DISTANCE .

Each time MEASUREMENT OF CULTURAL DISTANCE is activating, different groups of people are asked to look in the newspapers for images of people of different cultural, racial and ethnic backgrounds, depicted within the same photographic frame. Every time such an image caught their eye they should cut it out. Afterwards, they measure the distance between the two people in the picture as well as guess the distance between them in the reality. Like sociological documents, each image is provided with factual information about the different types of distances as well as the name of the person doing the measurement. The profile and the free interpretation of the person doing the measurement are as important as the factual figures.

The artist’s unique way of combining what could be an analytic investigation and the subjective interpretation creates a very interesting body of work that simultaneously contains poetic elements and pertinent sociopolitical critique.

Text by Tijana Miskovic.2016.

 

* Le Musée du RETARD/ The Delay Museum 
is a traveling museum showing artworks that were once in time, produced and exhibited the same day. It can, by invitation of other museums, move temporarily in and present parts of its collection the context of the hosting museum's own program or collection. 

Le Musée du RETARD/ The Delay Museumis often connected to EMERGENCY ROOM, BIENNALIST, Awareness Muscle and ULTRACONTEMPORARY exhibition formats developed by Thierry Geoffroy/ COLONEL.

Among previous exhibitions following can be mentioned.:
P.S.1/ MOMA, New York, USA; ZKM Museum, Karlsruhe, DE; Sprengel Museum, Hannover, DE; Moderna Museet, the Museum of Modern Art, Stockholm, SE; HEART- Herning Museum of Contemporary Art Denmark, Herning, DK; Galerie Taiss, FR;
Plazzo Delle Arti Napoli, IT; The Maldives Pavilion, Venice Biennale, Venice, IT; Liverpool Biennial, Liverpool, UK; Manifesta Biennal, Murcia, ES; National Museum Rejkavik, FI; Galerie Olaf Stüber, Berlin, DE, IKM Museum, Oslo, NO; Fries Museum, Leeuwarden, NL; The Model, Sligo, IR; Fotografisk Center, Copenhagen, DK; Blackwood Gallery Toronto, CAN; Galerie Ileana Tounta, Athens, GR.

Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0,5 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  40 cm
Measured by: Gooft

30/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation: 0 cm
Measured by: Kuorniki

22/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  20 cm
Measured by: Ulrika and Alice

15/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 7,3 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  30 cm
Measured by: 
Kuorinki 
27/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Kuorinki 

1/3 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Lise
 
24/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 3,4
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Alice

28/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 2 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  1 m
Measured by: Geoff
 
13/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 15 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  1,30 cm
Measured by: Lise
 
15/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 2,5 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  30 cm
Measured by: 
Kuorinki 
27/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 6,3 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  30 cm
Measured by: Lise

20/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Lise

15/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1,8 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  1,3 m
Measured by: 
Lise
27/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1,5 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0,5 m
Measured by: Geoff
 
25/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Lise
 
12/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Lise
 
20/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0,1 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  10 m
Measured by: Kuorinki
 
25/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1,5 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  50 cm
Measured by: Alicia
 
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1,5 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  8 m
Measured by: Alice
 
31/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  1,6 m
Measured by: Alice
 
28/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Geoff

1/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 2 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  5 cm
Measured by: Geoff
 
6/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  0 cm
Measured by: Lise
 
23/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  1 m
Measured by: Geoff
 
06/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 0 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  35 cm
Measured by: Lise
 
29/1 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm
Measured cultural distance in the picture: 1 cm
Estimated cultural distance in real situation:  20 cm
Measured by: Alice

1/2 2003
Newspaper cutout on paper with text 
21 x 29,7 cm









penhagen · Copenhagen 2300 · Denmark