Peephole

Jacques Di Piazza’s artistic practice is deeply rooted in observation, gathering and the unexpected resonance of everyday traces. His gaze lingers on the little things, the overlooked, the infra-ordinary, the seemingly insignificant, and elevates them to question their form and function, and through them, reflect on our society.

For Art au Centre, the artist focused on the objects commonly found in shop windows: rental notices and for-sale signs that punctuate our urban journeys. These material signals are designed to catch our eye, and here, they still do, but with a special twist. The artist shifts their context, transforming them into autonomous objects, exhibited in the very spaces they are meant to advertise. Through this artistic treatment, they take on a new dimension.

The sign becomes a reflective surface where interior and exterior blur into one. It is no longer the inside that is being showcased, but rather the outside, projected into the window and, in doing so, inhabiting the space. The rental notice, typically recognizable by its standardized form and color codes, becomes dysfunctional: a hole pierced at its center disrupts its use. Acting like a peephole (judas in French), a term that cleverly merges “to peep” and “hole”, this opening invites the viewer to sneak a glance, to observe (or even admire) the space itself by drawing all attention to it.

“Renting” means allowing someone the use of property in exchange for payment, a commodity (an object, a space, sometimes a body) one seeks to possess. But “praising” (also “louer” in French) is declaring something worthy of admiration. The artist explores this double meaning by playfully challenging our perception.