JE NE JETTE RIEN is a 2018 work by Ben Vautier, executed in acrylic on canvas in a square format measuring 80 × 80 cm. It is a unique work, signed by the artist and accompanied by certificates of authenticity.
Through this statement, Ben transforms an everyday phrase into a genuine artistic position. Je ne jette rien may initially be read with humour, almost like a personal confession, but it quickly opens onto a broader reflection on accumulation, memory and our relationship with objects.
In Ben’s work, words are never simply used to communicate an idea: they become an artistic medium in their own right. His instantly recognisable handwriting gives the message an intimate and direct quality, as though the artist were addressing the viewer personally.
The strength of the work lies precisely in the contrast between the apparent simplicity of the phrase and the many interpretations it can generate. Keeping, preserving, accumulating, refusing to let go — ordinary gestures that here take on an almost philosophical dimension.
The square format further reinforces the graphic impact of the text and focuses attention on the message, within the direct and pared-back aesthetic that has become emblematic of Ben’s work.
JE NE JETTE RIEN perfectly illustrates Ben’s ability to begin with an apparently ordinary phrase and turn it into a humorous yet thoughtful reflection on our relationship with the world, with objects and with what we choose to keep.
Available at Galerie De Medicis, Paris.
