Poétique de l'archive

The plastic artist Alexandra Chauchereau has been working for several years on archives, memory and disappearance. In this new exhibition at the Atelier Piece Unique, she explores these wonderful corners of the world that are the homes of our childhood, as described by the philosopher Gaston Bachelard. “In his book The Poetics of Space, the author shows that the house is a real cosmos. Memories of our old homes are always remembered with great intensity ... ”

In this series, titled Paperwall, which she presents for the first time at the Atelier Piece Unique gallery, the artist evokes the places of her childhood. She starts from personal archives, apartment plans that she transcends to give them a timeless plastic beauty. “I combine the two-dimensional drawing with prints with stencils or stamps. These elements refer to the decorations and wallpapers of each home. The artist covers parts of the painting with layers of translucent colors. “The image disappears under a cottony veil, more or less opaque, more or less perforated. The memory exists, but it is eaten away by the limbo of oblivion. “For her small formats, Alexandra Chauchereau chose the technique of collage.

“I integrate wallpapers found in second-hand goods. I tear them up, in control, to reveal the bottom layer, to suggest a scratch, an attack of time. “Gold thread embroidery sometimes magnifies this wound. It is a reference to the Japanese art of Kintsugi, consisting of gluing broken objects with gold in an act of resilience. The exhibition also creates a dialogue between these “paperwalls” with older paintings. These decline enigmatic characters, which could evoke the inhabitants of the places. Alexandra Chauchereau thus takes visitors on a journey into the past, where everyone can find their Proust madeleine. How good it is sometimes to go back to your childhood!