PASSAGES
CENTRE D'ART CONTEMPORAIN
9 RUE JEANNE D'ARC — TROYES
Time After Time is Canadian artist Vanessa Brown’s first solo exhibition in France. Based in Luxembourg, Brown explores in this project both the persistence of gestures and recurring motifs over time, as well as what might lie “after time” — in a more metaphysical sense.
The exhibition’s title, borrowed from Cyndi Lauper’s 1983 melancholic pop ballad, evokes philosophical reflections on the nature of time: not only as linear succession or becoming, but also as simultaneity, evanescence, and transition. Themes of care, protection, and sorority run through the song’s lyrics — themes that resonate deeply within Brown’s artistic practice. Her work blends craft-based techniques into installations that are at once dreamlike and physically grounded, balancing fragility and presence.
Brown’s practice navigates a tension between temporalities: between the urgencies of the present and a poetic attention to the traces of gestures and stories that came before us. Recurring symbols often appear in her work — a hand, a moth, a key, stitched knots, armored dresses… — suspended somewhere between dream and reality. Many of the forms featured in the exhibition draw direct inspiration from the local context of Troyes, with its deep ties to hosiery, care, and the ongoing preservation of this material heritage still visible in the public space today.
Time After Time was conceived entirely for the art centre and unfolds across all five of its exhibition rooms. The project extends into the city with Vapeurs, a site-specific installation created for the Apothicairerie de Troyes — a partner in the project and a rich source of inspiration for the artist.
Opening
>from 6:00 pm
>Friday, May 16, 2025
Opening weekend
To celebrate Vanessa Brown’s medieval inspirations, come and enjoy an afternoon of medieval games in the garden with your family, followed by our new feature: storytelling tours.
> Museum Night on May 17 from 3:00 PM to 7:30 PM
> Games from 3:00 PM to 6:30 PM, free entry
> Storytelling tour at 6:30 PM, registration required, €6 full price and €4 for children & members
Tour and Yoga with Saskia
In partnership with the Saskia Yoga Association
> Fridays, May 23 and June 20 at 6:00 PM
> €12 full price, €6 for members
Saturday Infra: Let’s Talk About the Exhibition!
Saturday, May 31 at 2:00 PM
Free entry
Rendez-vous in the Gardens
Guided tour of the Marot House and its garden
June 6, 7, and 8 at 5:00 PM
> Free entry
Hammering Workshop – Botanical Printing on Fabric
Click here to participate, June 7th
Click here to participate, June 8th
> June 7 and 8 from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
> €6 full price, €4 for children & members
Guided Tour in French Sign Language (LSF)
In partnership with the association Des Yeux, Des Mains
> Saturday, June 7 at 2:00 PM
> Free with registration
Storytelling Tours of the Exhibition
In partnership with the association Conteurs des Villes et des Champs
> Sundays, June 15 and July 20 at 4:30 PM
> €6 full price, €4 for children & members
Infra Evening: Readings in the Exhibition
> Sunday, June 15 at 6:00 PM
> Free entry
Special Screening at Utopia:
Jeannette, The Childhood of Jeanne d’Arc
by Bruno Dumont, 2017, 1h45
> Sunday, June 22 at 10:00 AM
> €7 at the cinema entrance
Infra Evening: Relaxation Ball Massage
With Marie-Laure Desnoës, sophrologist
> Friday, July 4 at 6:00 PM
> €15 full price – €10 for members
Infra Wednesday: Introduction to Role-Playing Games
Wednesday, July 9 at 2:00 PM
Free with registration
Leisure Passes: Visual Arts Workshops
> July 10, 12, 17, 19, 24, 26, 31, and August 2, 6, 8
> Registration on the City of Troyes website
Workshop with the Artist
> Saturday, August 9 from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
> €20 full price, €15 for members
– Limited places available
