PARIS—Launched in 2006 by then French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, La Force de l’Art is a triennial art exhibition organized under the aegis of France’s Culture Ministry to showcase contemporary French output. While the triennial’s first edition was hurriedly put together in just six months, this second show should be a more measured event, with a full three years having been available for its preparation. And where, in 2006, 15 curators were asked to make individual selections, the 2009 edition has been put together by a team of only three: Jean-Louis Froment, founder of the influential CAPC Musée d’Art Contemporain in Bordeaux, which he ran from 1973 to 1996; the writer and art critic Jean-Yves Jouannais; and Didier Ottinger, a senior curator at the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

Like the 2006 edition, La Force de l’Art 2009 (running April 24 to June 1) will be held in Paris’s Grand Palais, a gigantic, glass-roofed exhibition space built for the 1900 Exposition Universelle. The Grand Palais can be a difficult location in which to exhibit art, both its size and dominant architecture threatening to overwhelm works shown. For this reason, the curators asked architect Philippe Rahm to design a setting for them: he came up with what he calls “white geology,” a 160 by 25 meter (525 by 82 feet) white bar that is “deformed, hollowed out, or swollen” by the “forces” of the individual artworks placed within it.

The three curators set out to reflect the up-and-coming French “scene,” and consequently included foreign artists who live and work in France and French-born creators based outside the country. They also asked a handful of established French artists to create works at Parisian landmarks of their choosing, such as the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre. Furthermore, numerous “guest” artists have been asked to contribute events and performances at the Grand Palais.

On the eve of the show’s opening, ARTINFO asked co-curator Didier Ottinger to tell us more about it.

How does this year’s event differ from the first Force de l’Art three years ago?

There are many differences, but the major one is that the first Force de l’Art was planned as a survey of the French situation in contemporary art, with 350 participating artists; for this second edition we decided to offer as much space and freedom as possible to each of the artists we selected, which means that in comparison with the first edition we have quite a short list: Inside the Grand Palais itself there will be only — if we can say “only” — 33 exhibiting artists.

Why is there a need for this kind of event?

There has been a need for a long time, which has been expressed over the past couple of years by curators, the artists themselves, and certain politicians, too. We have to be honest: Many people think that French art is under-represented in France itself. I worked for a year as a guest curator at MoMA in New York. I asked my fellow curators there: “How come there are so few French artists in your galleries and programs?” And the answer was always: “Why should we exhibit French artists when museums in France don’t?”

Why do you think France has this problem?

There are many reasons, but one important one is that since the French Revolution, France has thought of itself as universal. People think it’s a pity to consider any question from just a national point of view. So if you look at the exhibitions and acquisition policy in a place like the Centre Pompidou, it’s used to being international, and it’s always been considered very pejorative to talk about “French artists.” You say, “Is it part of the international scene or not?” But if you want to be part of this international scene, sometimes you have to promote yourself as a national product.

Do you think there has been a significant change in the direction of French art over the past three years? How would you describe the current trends?