The Opponents

What is political rhetoric? How is a word embodied? How do we establish a listening ear? These are all questions at the heart of so called politics. And just as decisive, who is talking to whom? For Pauline Bastard, whose projects (films and performances) consist of investigating the real and drawing out fictions that strip it back to its foundations, the 2022 presidential campaign offered the perfect opportunity to do so. Here are the bodies of some – you, me, everyone, in short the ultimate political body in a democracy – who endorse, are taken by the game and sometimes the words already spoken by others – well-known candidates. From one word to another, through the gaps that this authorises as much as the unforeseen associations, the exposure is as enjoyable as it is disconcerting. (Nicolas Feodoroff)