Maxime Matthys

« Sortez Couvert  » (get out covered) is an artistic performance created in Rennes on March 23, 2020 , during the covid-19 pandemic. Most of the European governments have launched a massive quarantine system to fight again the virus. In France, any attempt to go outside for any means has to go with a paper permission form that every citizen has to carry all the time. These forms are mandatory to be filled in with the complete informations of the citizen, but also the date, time and reason of stepping off the quarantine place. By disappearing under a hundred of permission forms I wanted to question general quarantine dictated by governments in almost every country of the world. The costume, made up of over 150 certificates, is a metaphor for the current health situation in France and many other countries; put the population in quarantine to compensate for the lack of preparation and reaction of governments.

Originally thought to catch passers-by on the street, « Sortez Couvert » went viral on the Internet and has been reported by the press worldwide, reaching more than a million people, notably through international radio and television. Readers, listeners and viewers therefore, without always having chosen it, attended the exhibition of a work of art. This performance question thus the access to contemporary art in a pandemic context when all cultural institutions are closed and households confined.

Full press release here