Female Dishes, 2018-2022

Technique: ceramic
Exhibition available in 2 formats for outdoor use and 1 format for indoor use.

"My artwork has always told the stories of my life. As a young adult, when I lost my parents after long illnesses, I crossed the Atlantic Ocean to rebuild myself, and drawing was my lifeboat. When I became a mother, drawing also anchored me through the chaos of parenthood. Later, when cancer attacked my body, it was by sculpting clay that I was able to keep my head above water. For me, doing is a vital need.
Through the process of constructing each piece, I established an emotional connection with the clay which then gave birth to new forms.
The Female Vaisselle series of ceramic sculptures explores the female figure as a symbolic vessel, a container with human attributes, as the storage place of life experiences: fertility and motherhood, balance and gravity, humor and absurdity are some of the themes I explored in these sculptures.
The title 'Female Vaisselle' combines French, my mother tongue, and English, my adopted language. In English, 'Female' and 'Vaisselle' rhyme. The word 'Female', which means feminine, is pronounced 'Fimelle', and 'vaisselle' sounds the same as the word 'vessel', which means 'container'. By extension, the word 'Vaisselle' implies 'doing the dishes', a domestic task still too often assigned to women.
Drawing inspiration from feminist artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Sarah Lucas, and Genesis Belanger, who radically explore the representation of the female body, 'Female Vaisselle' pushes the boundaries of figurative representations, communicating both the power and vulnerability of the female body."