Exquis by Marie Ottavi – François Chaignaud

François Chaignaud is an artist, dancer, choreographer, author, and performer who embraces risky extremes, transformation, disguise, and the hybridization of techniques as well as multiple sources of inspiration.
From the beginning of his career, he has collaborated with choreographers such as Alain Buffard, Boris Charmatz, Emmanuelle Huynh, and Gilles Jobin.
In 2020, François Chaignaud founded his own company, Mandorle Productions. This year, he notably co-directed In Absentia with Geoffroy Jourdain at the Théâtre de Chaillot, where he is an associate artist.

Together, we will explore his intimate relationship with clothing and the role of costume in his creative process—”this little world that defines and opens a realm of physical possibility and impossibility,” as he describes it.

François Chaignaud responds to the invitation of historian and performer Olivier Saillard, who himself was invited by artist Hélène Delprat. Delprat had been previously invited by author and art critic Catherine Millet, who joined Exquis at the request of filmmaker Albert Serra. Exquis is a series of conversations hosted by Marie Ottavi, examining the connections between clothing and what it reveals about us and our habits, from close up and afar.

“Exquisite” is a series of encounters around fashion and clothing, based on the theory of six degrees of separation and the exquisite corpse. The rules of the Exquis game are simple and fun: the first guest sheds light on the topic from their perspective. It links clothing to cinema, contemporary art, literature, music, gastronomy, and architecture. At the end of the conversation, they introduce the second person, who will in turn enrich the topic with their own vision. And so on.

Thus, a multi-faceted conversation unfolds, evolving with each encounter. It surprises and builds connections, complements or diverges, ultimately illuminating the theme through six carefully chosen perspectives. A blend of different worldviews emerges in this exploration, guided by Marie Ottavi.