Le Chat Noir is a site-specific exhibition by Julie Béna and Mark Ther, created for the historic premises of Parnas. A place where different forms of cultural and social life have intersected for more than a century, Parnas becomes an integral part of the exhibition. From the bohemian circles of the First Czechoslovak Republic and the cinematic milieu of FAMU to the jazz and underground scenes of the 1970s, the venue has witnessed successive generations, social roles and modes of self-presentation. This layered history provides the setting for an encounter between two artistic approaches grounded in drawing, staging and the exploration of identity.

The dialogue between the two artists begins with a collaborative collage of drawings on the wall by the entrance. Figures, gestures, landscapes and narrative fragments come together in a shared composition, while the distinctive visual language of each artist remains clearly recognisable. The collage introduces the exhibition’s central…