Andres Serrano: Portraits of America Teachers’ Days

The latest photography exhibition at the Musée Maillol in Paris is Andres Serrano: Portraits of America, and the museum is organising three teachers' days, when you can visit for free. Serrano has tackled some tough subjects, like the Ku Klux Klan, so a pre-visit can let you prepare what you would like pupils to concentrate on. In this electoral period, you may want to work on the sections about Donald Trump.

Serrano was born into a family of Honduran and Afro-Cuban origin in New York in 1950. He studied art but from the 1980s specialised in photography, sometimes courting controversy. He has focused on many aspects of American society, from Native Americans to the homeless, violence, religion, patriotism and death. His encounters with Donald Trump began in 2004, when he photographed him for a series called America Serrano created in response to the 9/11 attacks. In it, he tried to represent the essence of the nation through portraits of both famous and anonymous citizens. He revisited Donald Trump in a series created during Trump's presidency.

The Maillol exhibition includes 89 works from Serrano's series: Native Americans, America, Nomads, Infamous, The Klan, Torture, Holy Works, Objects of Desire, Immersions, Bodily Fluids, Nudes, History of Sex, The Morgue, Robots, The Game : All Things Trump…

The teachers' days are on Wednesday 22 May and Wednesdays 11 and 18 September, from 10.30 a.m. The Museum asks teachers to sign up beforehand. Just fill in the online form.

Andres Serrano: Portraits of America
Musée Maillol, Paris
Till 20 October 2024

You can get an overview of Serrano's work on his own website (under Series).