Magnum's Digital Art Exhibition Brings Colourful Images to Empty Locations

Magnum, the world’s authority on pleasure, has partnered with up and coming artists around the world to launch a new digital exhibition titled Pleasure Imagined. The exhibition will raise much needed funds for Magnum’s extended network of women cocoa farmers, via NGO 100WEEKS.

Launching on Magnum’s official Instagram channel (@Magnum), global artists have used the now famous images of eerily quiet city streets as their canvas to imagine a world post-lockdown. The artworks look forward to a time where social distancing restrictions are lifted, and we can meet with our loved ones to indulge in small moments of pleasure, once more. From hot air balloons flying through the air in Madrid, to a Magnum inspired marriage proposal on the streets of São Paulo, the artists have used a range of digital techniques to depict a new dawn.

From 25th May, Magnum will release a new artwork via Instagram, each day for the duration of the exhibition, which can then be downloaded from Magnum’s website. Magnum’s lead artist is French-Ivorian Aurélia Durand’s. Her West African heritage inspired her uniquely recognisable afro-pop artwork. The bespoke artwork sees a collision of colours adorning an original photograph taken by her father on a family trip to her mother’s native Ivory Coast, where Magnum sources much of its cocoa from.  

As well as highlighting a collective of emerging artists, Pleasure Imagined seeks to generate additional donations for Magnum’s community of cocoa farmers in West Africa’s Ivory Coast who, like many other communities around the world, have been impacted by the global pandemic. As part of the exhibition, Magnum is committing an unconditional donation of €250,000 to provide direct financial support to the women cocoa farmers within its extended network. 

Virtual visitors to the exhibition will be able to make additional donations to support the women cocoa farmers in Ivory Coast and choose from a selection of original artworks available for digital download, a visual reminder of their contribution. 

This kicks off a two-year programme with NGO partner 100WEEKS to help women cocoa farmers diversify their income and help lift them and their families out of poverty. The programme will provide them with direct, weekly payments, as well as training and coaching to develop their skills so that they can pursue what brings them pleasure.

Magnum’s lead artist, Aurélia Durand, said: “As an artist I always strive to create art that is true to me and what I believe. With the devastation that the current crisis has brought, I am grateful that I can share what pleasure means to me through my most precious and authentic means.

“Creating this piece was such an important and meaningful process, not only am I sharing my hopes for a harmonious and bright future, but the funds generated through this initiative will go towards making this a reality for cocoa farming communities in Ivory Coast impacted during these difficult times.”

This is the third year of Magnum’s art collaboration, an ongoing commitment to supporting artists and creators, with previous activations that saw California based artist Brendan Monroe bring surrealism to the streets in 2019, and French artist Thomas Danthony adorn iconic European cities with artwork derivative of life’s ‘pure pleasure’ in 2018. 

Pleasure Imagined will run from Monday 25th of May, with Magnum’s official Instagram account (@Magnum) highlighting a different artist every day for the duration of the exhibition. The exhibition encourages donations to support women cocoa farmers in Magnum’s extended supply network.

For more information or to donate, visit here.