Boltanski builds altars to memory and loss. Naked bulbs cast a ghostly blue glow around photos he finds at antique shops and flea markets. We cannot really make eye contact with “Sylvie,” who is out of focus and obscured by the wire; the piece mimics the way memories shift and fade. Boltanski was deeply affected by his Jewish father’s stories of hiding in Paris during World War II. We don’t know if Sylvie was also a hidden person, or even if Sylvie was Jewish, but Boltanski transforms her into an icon of humanity.

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