Pompidou Centre, Paris As the gallery prepares to close its doors for five years, Tillmans is let loose across all 6,000 sq metres of its public library. The results are stunning – and chilling
In September the Pompidou Centre in Paris closes for five years for renovation. The building is nearly 50 years old and needs to be cleared of asbestos, and to reconnect with Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers’ original design after years of architectural accumulations. Many of the departments are already moving into temporary new homes, including the huge Bibliothèque publique d’information, the public library usually based on the second floor. Nearly all of its contents have been emptied out, but before it’s stripped back altogether, Wolfgang Tillmans has been invited to deconstruct it another way. His show, Rien ne nous y préparait – Tout nous y préparait (Nothing could have prepared us – Everything could have prepared us) covers all 6,000 sq metres of the space.