Optimist

Stirred by the winds, surprising, colorful patterns flutter on Annecy Lake. These sails designed by Cédric Caprio are warning signs carried by budding sailors. Would you know how to read them?

Inspired by the flags sailors have been using since the 18th century to communicate, Cédric Caprio assigned a meaning to each boat. “SOS,” “help on the way,” and “warning!” cross paths with and answer each other. All summer long we’ll watch their graceful ballet from the shore. But the youths in their rickety skiffs have hoisted the sails of disquiet. Like the young people marching for the climate, these apprentice sailors are whistleblowers, manifesting their fragile determination without a sound, without making any waves, every time they go by.

Born in 1994, visual artist Cédric Caprio lives and works in Aix-en-Provence (France). He graduated from École supérieure d’art d’Aix-en-Provence in 2020 and prefers to use ordinary materials and pre-existing objects in his work, diverting them from their primary function to create installations. With minimal or even minimalist intervention, he raises questions about individual freedom and the freedom to act. He has exhibited his works at La Coste in Puy-Sainte-Réparade (2021), the chapelle de la Visitation (Aix-en-Provence), and the Gham & Dafe gallery in Montreal (2018).