We Are Here – Petit Palais, France

The title of the exhibition, We Are Here, has been used as a slogan in different historical and contemporary contexts, such as the civil rights movement. It is associated with messages of affirmation, resilience, and protest, while expressing the visibility and legitimacy acquired by this art movement.
Beginning on 12 June, and open throughout the duration of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer, the large-scale exhibition, the first of its kind within the walls of a public arts institution, marks an important turning point in the street art movement. The exhibition closes on 17 November 2024, a few days after the return of Paris+ Art Basel to the Grand Palais.

“The Petit Palais is very happy to welcome the very first street art exhibition of this scale within a public arts institution, accessible to all audiences, and free of charge, in line with our policies to share culture with the largest possible public, all the while respecting the principles driving the street art movement itself.”
Annick Lemoine

“Once again, Paris is the first city to recognize the immensity of the street art movement by setting the tone to the rhythm of history. This exhibition highlights the French capital’s embracing of modernity, while valorizing its past. An event that matches the scale of the venue and its history, while displaying the works of these artists in a veritable dialogue with the Museum’s collections. Paris reinforces its pioneering image as the unmissable meeting place for the greatest French and international artists of a powerful movement that challenges the status quo. We Are Here!”
Mehdi Ben Cheikh

It is the brainchild of Mehdi Ben Cheikh, Director of the Galerie Itinerrance, and curator of the exhibition along with Annick Lemoine, Director of the Petit Palais, in collaboration with the Association de promotion des arts plastiques et urbains contemporains (APAPUC). The exhibition brings together a host of remarkable street art pieces.

Thirteen key artists from the street art movement like Shepard Fairey, Invader, D*Face, Seth, Cleon Peterson, Hush, Swoon, Vhils, Inti, Add Fuel, and Conor Harrington take over the Petit Palais with a selection of monumental works, fostering a dialogue with the Museum’s collections. The exhibition features over two hundred works, all of which are presented in the same gallery space. This spectacular installation was designed as a tribute to the different art salons and fairs of previous times, like the Salon des Refusés and Salon d’Automne, at the origin of numerous artistic revolutions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In this vein, the works on display have been created by major artists who have written and continue to write the history of street art. The immersive scenography invites the public to discover the diversity and wealth of this thriving movement.