Biography

Born in Quebec, I am now living in Paris and working in Montreuil. For many years, I juggled my artistic practice with my scientific career. I am now completely devoted to my art. From 1983 to 1986, I was in New York City and I attended the New York Feminist Art Institute. I became familiar with the works of Louise Bourgeois, Myriam Shapiro Judy Chicago and many other women artists. I visited museums and galleries and learned that art was not only meant to reproduce reality. It became a real passion for me. Back in Paris, I worked with the Italian painter Nicola Pagallo, and later on with the Swiss sculptor Paul Flury. Until 1998, my work was mostly 2 dimensional. I used lines, colors and surfaces as an autonomous language. Little by little, my paint became thicker and I started introducing objects in my canvas. Then, I switched to sculpture and installations. In 2001, I had the opportunity to attend the workshop “Objects, Sculptures and Installations” with the Spanish artist Paloma Navares at the «Internationale Sommerakademie für Bildende Kunst» in Salzburg, an experience which had a strong impact on my work.
    In 2015, I was invited for an artist residency by “Da Wang Culture Highland” (Shenzhen China). This residency was concluded by a solo show: “Snapshots from Wutong”. My other solo shows include “C'est le printemps au Delta” (Delta, Paris, 2013) and “Désir Viscéral” (L'Openbach, Paris, 2018)
    I also took part in several group shows on the theme of “upcycling art” : “Metamorphosis 2018” (Espace Ségur, Paris 2018), “Universal Sea Award” (Center of Polish Sculpture, Oronsko Poland 2018), “Extraordinaires objets de l’ordinaire” (Villa Belleville, Paris, 2017), “Seconde vie par l’art” (Conseil Général, Nancy, 2012) , ”Met’Art Morphoses 4” .(Nogent-le-Roi , 2012).
    A second line of work, eroticism, allowed me to take part in “Villa Héro(t)ique” (Galerie à l'Ecu de France, Viroflay, France 2014) , “Eros” (Galerie La Ralentie, Paris, France 2017) and “The Femail Project", ARTicle Gallery, Birmingham (UK)
    I also was part of several international group shows organized by the Dutch Foundation “Stichting White Cube”. This Foundation organizes Biennial “Global Village” Exhibitions which give emerging artists from all over the world the chance to meet and share with each other and to meet their public. I participated in the 2012, 2014 and 2016 editions, travelling to the Netherlands, France, Denmark and Germany. I also had three smaller exhibitions with this foundation: "U bent hier" (Playroom Gallery, Zaandam, Netherlands 2019), ‘Matkalla Onneen” (Nokia and Ylivieska, Finland and Alkmaar, Netherlands 2017) and “Ecce Homo” (Aachen, Allemagne 2014). The complete list of my exhibitions can be found on my CV.

Artist Statement
    My work is inspired by my personal experiences but also by contemporary events and social, ecological or political issues. The body, especially the fragmented body, is almost an obsession in my work and the question of gender identity comes up again and again. Eros and Thanatos are always present. My work can be provocative, sexualized and political, but humour and irony are never far when I reveal the vulnerability at the heart of the human condition or tell poetic stories about the desires and contradictions of our time. André breton wrote: "Beauty will be CONVULSIVE or it will not be at all." The beauty that I am looking for jolts and questions. Artists who inspire me most are those who come from dada or surrealism, such as Meret Oppenheim or Hans Bellmer and their contemporary inheritors, such as Louise Bourgeois and Annette Messager. These artists were able to transform the experience of everyday life into a piece of art. Through their use of found objects, they also revolutionized the way of depicting reality.

    Sculpture and installations are my favored means of expression. I do not do preliminary sketches or plan in advance. My starting point is often a found object, chosen for its strong symbolic charge. Used objects that are removed from their original context acquire a different meaning in a work of art. My works are assembled like dreams in which various elements come together by free association and directly address our imagination. I use objects in different ways. Ready-made objects are assembled as the elements of a composition or combined with a shape created using another technique (ceramics, glass paste, metal, textile, plaster, paper...). Objects can also be molded and represented as their absence or transformed like the material for sculpture. Sometimes I work in series or combine different elements in one installation. My initial idea is in constant dialogue with the material as I assemble, construct and deconstruct. This interactive process continues until I can give a title to the artwork. Then, like a grigri, it acquires a power of exorcism.