We got some friends coming together for this one: Underdogs in Lisbon is launching a collaboration with the acclaimed French artist and past cover artist, JR. The gallery is bringing JR’s artistic and community work to Lisbon, confronting us with the question: can art change the world? JR will be presenting in 3 different portions: showcasing a solo exhibition, JR: Through My Window, featuring 36 lithographs; the Inside Out Project, which invites the public to participate in an artistic experience; and an unprecedented work with Portuguese artist Alexandre Farto aka Vhils.
JR’s solo exhibition will be on display at Underdogs Gallery from 28 March to 19 April. JR: Through My Window presents the artist’s work in a retrospective manner, featuring 36 lithographs of his large-scale installations.
Each piece carries a social and community story, told by JR, whose audio testimony can be accessed through several QR Codes throughout the show: “I made my hand into a large sculpture we installed at the opening of the Chauvet cave in the mountains. This idea of handprint comes from the desire to leave a mark on society,” JR reveals about the artwork Empreinte, Chauvet, France, 2023.
JR began by creating art on the streets of Paris, later crossing borders and working all around the world – on the map displayed in the gallery, one can gain a global perspective of his journey and impact through each geographic point he crossed. From the optical illusion at the Louvre Museum in Paris to the intervention at the high-security Tehachapi prison in California, JR splits his time between creating monumental works and projects with local communities, in refugee camps, conflict zones, and other locations where the artist chooses to use art as a tool for sociopolitical transformation.
These works are limited editions and will be available for sale at the gallery, with early access possible through an online pre-sale Viewing Room, from 26 to 28 March, on the Underdogs website.
