P L S Issue 37: cosa mentale. disalienating institutions

Issue 37 of Palais de Tokyo magazine addresses the relationships between mental health, contemporary creation, and art and culture venues, in particular through the prism of institutional psychotherapy, a set of practices aimed at disalienating institutions—initially psychiatric ones. P L S echoes the awareness of mental health at the Palais de Tokyo which works on various levels, starting with the art centre's expertise when it comes to cultural mediation, which has allowed bonds to be forged with actors in the social, psychiatric and medical fields, as well as with the people concerned. This has also led to the opening of the hamo, a new space for hosting, practising, researching and for experiences which are especially inspired by the notions of well-being and care. (Re)thinking cultural institutions from the perspective of vulnerability means supporting and valuing differences, and inventing new ways of caring and living together. It is also about politicising and poeticising the relationship with mental health, by seeing it as a lever for modifying society: to challenge an outdated dichotomy between "the healthy" and "the ill," and to acknowledge a spectrum of sensibilities towards the world. This in turn raises questions about the notion of "normality," the difficulties to include differences, and the invisible violence of normative systems. Published on the occasion of a the season of exhibitions at the Palais de Tokyo from16 February to 30 June 2024), in particular: Approaching Unreason, a group show which presents collective artistic practices in various structures associated with mental health, be they institutional or not; Mohamed Bourouissa's exhibition Signal; the group show Dislocations, organised in collaboration with the association Portes ouvertes sur l'art. Published twice a year, Palais magazine (P L S since 2023) offers an in-depth perspective on the exhibitions and program of the Palais de Tokyo. Palais allows people to see contemporary art in a topical way, as often as possible from the point of view of the artists themselves. Each issue of the magazine includes dossiers, interviews, essays, special projects and inserts, all contributed by artists, art critics, historians or theorists, making Palais magazine an essential tool for apprehending contemporary art.