The inaugural exhibition of "Petit Hall" at Toulouse Capitole University brings together works that highlight the interactions between image and word, between reading and perception. The use of words in art emerged with the avant-garde movement of the early 20th century.

This close relationship has continued to assert itself in contemporary art right up to the present day. The word has become an aesthetic form in the same way as color and form, serving a poetic language, existential questioning, memory... (Jean Bazaine, Pierre Buraglio, Juliette Green, Éric Pougeau, Léo Scalpel, Béatrice Utrilla). The use of words is also a political act that takes the form of manifesto works by activist artists who are determined to challenge the dominating authority (Babi Badalov, Guerrilla Girls). While others (Marion Mounic, Libia Posada, Miguel Ángel Rojas) denounce injustice and try to make the voices of the oppressed heard.

From visual poetry to various forms of expression, “L'art et le mot” explores this fascinating and complex relationship between graphic dynamics and the weight of their meaning.