Valérie Belin
Valérie Belin uses photography to explore the human body as a powerful vessel for abstraction and projected meaning. She has photographed live models and mannequins, masks and cardsharks, dancers and bodybuilders all while referring to the central theme of reality vs. artificiality. Belin questions the construction and fetishization of mainstream beauty ideals and enduring gender constructs.
Valérie Belin graduated from the École Nationale des Beaux-arts in 1988, where she focused on American art of the ‘60s and ‘70s. She furthered her studies by pursuing philosophy of art at the Université Panthéon-Sorbonne in Paris. Her work has gained global recognition, with solo exhibitions held at prestigious institutions such as the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA; and the Victoria & Albert Museum, London; amongst others.
Belin has been recognized for her contributions to the field of photography with numerous awards, including the Paris Photo prize in 1997, the CCF (HSBC) Foundation for Photography Prize in 2000, and the Prix Pictet in 2015. In 2019, she was appointed as an Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres in France. Currently, a retrospective of her work titled Valérie Belin: “L’incertain Beauté du Monde is on view at the MUba Eugène Leroy in Tourcoing, France through August 2023. Featuring one hundred photographs, the exhibition provides a comprehensive overview of Belin's career.
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Valérie BelinStudy for Black Eyed Susan #8, 2013-24
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Valérie BelinThe Girl who Never Died, 2022
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Valérie BelinVéga, 2023
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Valérie BelinGalatée, 2023
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Valérie BelinCassiopée, 2023
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Valérie BelinWhite Narcissus in Orange (Colour Wonder), 2018
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Valérie BelinPower Girl, 2016
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Valérie BelinLady Round Brush, 2017
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Valérie BelinThe Stranger, 2016
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Valérie BelinLady Stroke, 2017
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Valérie BelinJunita, 2015
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Valérie BelinSterling Silver Jug, 2018
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Valérie BelinStill life with mirror, 2014
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Valérie BelinUntitled, 2008
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Valérie BelinUntitled, 2008
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Valérie BelinCarol, 2016
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Valérie BelinLady Inpainting, 2017
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Valérie BelinPortrait of Ava, 2020
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Valérie BelinPortrait of Gaby, 2020
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Valérie BelinThe Avenger, 2016
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In the Studio
4 June - 3 August 2024 -
Valérie Belin: Heroes & Modern Royals
20 April - 30 June 2023Edwynn Houk Gallery is thrilled to present Valérie Belin's most recent bodies of work, "Heroes" and "Modern Royals," in their global premiere.Read more -
Winter Show
29 November 2022 - 6 January 2023 -
ADAA Autumn Online Viewing Room
14 September - 30 November 2020
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Valérie Belin at musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux
solo exhibition Silent Visions 9 May 2024From April 24 to October 28, 2024, the Museum of Fine Arts Bordeaux presents 'Valérie Belin: Silent Visions' ('visions silencieuses'), an exhibition of more than...Read more -
Valérie Belin at the Brooklyn Museum
In the Now: Gender and Nation in Europe 20 February 2024Valérie Belin's work is on exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum's group show In the Now: Gender and Nation in Europe from March 8 - July 7, 2024 in the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art.Read more -
Valérie Belin elected to the Académie des beaux-arts
24 January 2024Congratulations to Valérie Belin on her election to the Academy of Fine Arts in the photography sector.Read more -
Valérie Belin: L'incertaine beauté du monde
Solo exhibition at MUba Eugène Leroy, France 17 March 2023"Valérie Belin: L'incertaine beauté du monde" ("The Uncertain Beauty of the World') presents works from throughout the artist's career and is on view at MUba Eugène Leroy from 17 March - 27 August 2023.Read more -
Flora Photographica: The Flower in Contemporary Photography
Valérie Belin and Abelardo Morell included in forthcoming book from Thames & Hudson 6 May 2022A lush and definitive overview showcasing the masterworks of flower photography by the world’s leading photographers by William A. Ewing, Danaé Panchaud Flowers have been...Read more -
Valérie Belin at The Norton Museum of Art
Origin Stories: Photography of Africa and its Diaspora 15 October 2021Origin Stories: Photography of Africa and Its Diaspora confronts the intertwined relationship between identity and colonialism in communities across the African continent and throughout...Read more -
Valérie Belin's Work at Centre Pompidou Málaga
Exhibition on view 3 December - 11 April 2021 3 December 2020The Centre Pompidou in Malaga presents "The Uncertain Portrait, Photography and Video 1972-2011," a group exhibition of 26 artists focusing on portraits though the lens of photography and video. The show examines how the contemporary portrait has been reinvented over the years, overturning clichés and showing how they do not reflect reality as they are thought to. Three works by Valérie Belin are included in the exhibition: one photograph from Mannequins (2003) and two photographs from Black Women II (2006).Read more -
Noir & Blanc at the Grand Palais
Collection of the Bibliothèque nationale de France 18 November 2020This important exhibition organized by the Grand Palais and Bibliothèque nationale de France includes works by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Bill Brandt, Brassaï, Man Ray, Diane Arbus, Robert Frank, and Valérie Belin, amongst others.Read more -
Unseen: 35 Years of Collecting Photographs at the Getty Museum
Featuring work by Abelardo Morell, Mona Kuhn, Valérie Belin, & more 17 December 2019The Getty Museum's curatorial team has unearthed an array of treasures that have never been shown here before.Read more -
Prix Pictet: A Lens on Sustainability
VALÉRIE BELIN FEATURED IN PRIX PICTET’S PODCAST SERIES 12 November 2019Prix Pictet, the world’s leading prize for photography and sustainability, presents a new podcast series titled ‘Prix Pictet: A lens on sustainability’. This series consists...Read more -
Valérie Belin: Reflection at the Victoria & Albert Museum
SOLO EXHIBITION OF NEW SERIES AT THE VICTORIA & ALBERT MUSEUM 24 October 2019Valérie Belin (b. 1964) is an internationally acclaimed French artist known for her monumental photographs exploring artifice, identity and representation. Belin’s work challenges viewers to...Read more -
Valérie Belin’s Reflections of the Real and Imaginary
VALÉRIE BELIN IN THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHOTOGRAPHY 22 October 2019Known for exploring ideas of surface, identity and artificiality, Valérie Belin is one of the most celebrated French photographers working today. Internationally renowned and critically...Read more -
Looking Back: Ten Years of Pier 24 Photography
Diane Arbus, Valérie Belin, Dorothea Lange & Vera Lutter in Exhibition at Pier 24 13 September 2019The first of two consecutive exhibitions that Pier 24 Photography will present on the occasion of its tenth anniversary, Looking Back features photographers and subjects...Read more -
Prix de la photo "Madame Figaro" Arles 2019: the eight women nominated
VALÉRIE BELIN IN MADAME FIGARO 6 July 2019Valérie Belin nominated for Madame Figaro prize for her Rencontres d’Arles exhibition.Read more -
Female Photographers at the 2019 AIPAD Photography Show, Part 1 of 2
Valérie Belin & Vera Lutter in Collector Daily 5 April 2019Starting with the glamorous face of a fashion model, Valérie Belin combines expressive painted makeup and digital layering to create an eerie portrait upended by...Read more -
Civilization: The Way We Live Now at Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing
VALÉRIE BELIN, VERA LUTTER, DAVID MAISEL, AND ROBERT POLIDORI IN UCCA EXHIBITION 9 March 2019Civilization: The Way We Live Now presents more than 250 works by over 120 of the world’s most renowned photographic artists, offering a complex and...Read more -
Civilization: The Way We Live Now at the National Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art, Korea
Valérie Belin's "Models II" in Touring Exhibition 18 October 2018Civilization: The Way We Live Now is a large-scale international photography exhibition featuring the work of more than 135 photographers from Asia, Australia, Europe, Africa...Read more -
Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography
MoMA Exhibition Celebrates Female Photographers 7 May 2010For much of photography’s 170-year history, women have expanded its roles by experimenting with every aspect of the medium. Pictures by Women: A History of...Read more
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Paris Photo 2024
Grand Palais, Booth C25 7 - 10 November 2024Edwynn Houk Gallery is pleased to return to Paris Photo 2024 at the Grand Palais, Booth C25.Read more -
The Armory Show 2024
Javits Center, Booth 112 6 - 8 September 2024 -
Art Basel 2024
Hall 2.0, Booth B2 11 - 16 June 2024 -
AIPAD | The Photography Show 2024
Park Avenue Armory | Booth A62 25 - 28 April 2024Edwynn Houk Gallery is pleased to return to The Photography Show presented by AIPAD from April 25 - 28, 2024 at the Park Avenue Armory.Read more -
EXPO Chicago 2024
Navy Pier, Booth 201 11 - 14 April 2024Edwynn Houk Gallery is pleased to return to EXPO Chicago from April 11- 14, 2024, presenting a selection of 20th-century and contemporary artworks.Read more