Since its inception in 2017, the TextWork program has created a distinctive space for dialogue between writing and contemporary art practices. Developed by the Fondation Pernod Ricard with the support of the French Ministry of Culture, it is grounded in a shared ambition: to strengthen the international visibility of the French art scene by treating critical thought as a vital form of support for artists.

TextWork operates by fostering exchanges between artists working in France and writers from elsewhere, resulting in the production of in-depth critical texts. More than an editorial project, it supports artists by offering sustained attention to their practices at a particular moment in their career. For many emerging artists, these essays represent their first critical monograph; for other, more established ones, they open up less explored aspects of their work and propose renewed readings. 

Today, the first 40 texts of the program, presented in English and French, form the foundation of an expanding archive—a mirror of a scene in constant reinvention. By bringing them together in this publication, the Fondation Pernod Ricard and the French Ministry of Culture reaffirm their shared commitment to artistic creation and to the discourse that sustains it.

Artists: Martine Aballéa, Fabienne Audéoud, Bertille Bak, Yto Barrada, Eva Barto, Julie Béna, Neïl Beloufa, Jean-Luc Blanc, Camille Blatrix, Katinka Bock, Anne Bourse, Ali Cherri, Jagna Ciuchta, Julien Creuzet, Pauline Curnier-Jardin, Brice Dellsperger, Hubert Duprat, Mimosa Echard, Sylvie Fanchon, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Jean-Charles Hue, Kapwani Kiwanga, Emmanuelle Lainé, Laura Lamiel, Guillaume Leblon, Seulgi Lee, Anne Le Troter, Benoît Maire, Mélanie Matranga, Laurent Montaron, Benoît Piéron, Chloé Quenum, Jean-Charles de Quillacq, Jean-Claude Ruggirello, Liv Schulman, Alain Séchas, Bruno Serralongue, Thu-Van Tran, Sarah Tritz, Tatiana Trouvé.

Texts by Michelle Antoinette, Saul Anton, Federica Baeza, John Beeson, Andrew Berardini, Fernanda Brenner, Helena Chávez Mac Gregor, Binna Choi, Nick Currie, Marta Dziewańska, Sylvie Fortin, Orit Gat, Amelia Groom, Wong Bing Hao, Martin Herbert, Daisy Hildyard, Jesi Khadivi, Adam Kleinman, Léon Kruijswijk, Quinn Latimer, Sofia Lemos, Christina Li, Yung Ma, Chus Martínez, Evan Moffitt, Elizabeth A. Povinelli, Alex Quicho, Sarah Rifky, Caterina Riva, Sarah Robayo Sheridan, Yasmine Seale, Vivian Sky Rehberg, Chris Sharp, Mike Sperlinger, Stephan Steiner, Nora Sternfeld, Eloise Sweetman, Ana Teixeira Pinto, Rachel Valinsky, Joanna Warsza.

Co-published by Fondation Pernod Ricard & Mousse Publishing