Karen Knorr Lives in the castle
Current exhibition
Discover the unique world of photographer Karen Knorr in a retrospective exhibition of her work, where animals and heritage sites come together in a poetic and enigmatic setting.
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Prices (included in the castle admission ticket)
If you wish to buy your ticket in advance, select the ‘Self-guided tour of the monument’ ticket.
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Please note
Exhibition helds in the castle’s rooms.
Please note: the castle is not accessible to visitors with reduced mobility - Buy my ticket
Presentation
Discover the work of American photographer Karen Knorr through a retrospective exhibition spanning over forty years of her creative output.
Since the late 1970's, the photographer has been exploring the relationship between the home and its inhabitants. From the hushed interiors of London’s middle classes, where the decor becomes a silent portrait of those who inhabit it, to museums and cultural institutions, her images question the way in which places shape identities and behaviours.
From the 2000's onwards, her work has featured wild animals introduced into heritage sites. Through digital manipulation and, in this case, a taxidermy installation, tigers, deer, peacocks and monkeys disrupt the solemn order of the architecture and reveal, with a touch of irony, the tension between Nature and Culture.
At the Château d’Azay-le-Rideau, her photographs engage in a dialogue with the historical furnishings and décor. Without upsetting the balance of the space, Karen Knorr orchestrates a subtle interplay of infiltration and resonance. The exhibition thus offers a condensed journey through her work, transforming the château into an intensely lived-in space, situated between memory, fiction and the presence of animals.
This exhibition is presented as part of the celebrations marking the Bicentenary of Photography, organised by the Ministry of Culture, in partnership with the Centre des monuments nationaux, which is showcasing French photographic creativity and heritage in several national monuments. It also receives support from the Centre-Val de Loire Region as part of the "Les Nouvelles Renaissances" initiative.
Karen Knorr
Echoing the exhibition on display at Azay-le-Rideau Castle, Oiron Castle (62 km from Azay-le-Rideau) unveils another facet of Karen Knorr’s artistic work through a selection of images from her "Punk" series, shot in London in the 1970's.
Who is Karen Knorr?
An American by birth, Karen Knorr was born in 1954 in Frankfurt (Germany).
She studied photography at Franconia College (USA), then at the American College of Paris, at Harrow College of Art and Design in London, and subsequently at the Polytechnic of Central London (PCL), where she was a student of Victor Burgin. She has taught photography at numerous institutions, notably at the University for the Creative Arts in Farnham, UK.
Karen Knorr has taken part in numerous solo and group exhibitions. Her works have been acquired by a number of public institutions, such as the Centre Pompidou, The Arts Council (UK), the Fondation Cartier, the Kyoto Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Museum of Art, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Musée Carnavalet and the Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature in Paris.
Represented in France by the Les Filles du Calvaire gallery, Karen Knorr now lives and works in London.
Claude d’Anthenaise, curator of the exhibition
Honorary Chief Curator of Heritage, Claude d’Anthenaise directed the Musée de la chasse et de la nature in Paris for over twenty years between 1998 and 2020. He oversaw its renovation in 2007 and opened it up to contemporary art. As an independent curator, he has organised various exhibitions on the theme of animals in contemporary art. In particular, he served as artistic director of the "Monuments et Animaux’" event organised by the Centre des Monuments Nationaux in 2010–2011, which culminated in the exhibition "Bêtes off’"presented at the Conciergerie in Paris.
The exhibition "Karen Knorr habite le château" is not his first collaboration with Karen Knorr. He had previously invited her to exhibit works from her "Fables" series at the Musée de la chasse et de la nature in 2008 and at the Villa Savoye (Poissy) in 2011.
