Smoky earth Virginie Marin Leportier and Marine Médal

This exhibition brings together the work of Virginie Marin Leportier, ceramist and Marine Médal,
photographer. Virginie Marin Leportier plays with clay, essentially in black and white. She frequently uses a utilitarian object as a base, which she diverts, transforms and removes from its original function. She most often uses the raku firing technique, which leaves an element of randomness, the element of fire, in the rendering of the decoration and the twisting of the enamel. Through her installations, she seeks to create a poetic moment for the visitor, using materials that are partly removed from traditional ceramics (wool, tissue paper, etc.). Declinations, tears and poetry are part of her artistic vocabulary.
For several years, Marine Médal has been exploring the territory and the margins. She is interested in the principle of
and its socio-historical context. Here she presents some images from a series on the remains of
mining remains. For the occasion, she chooses to treat in black and white photographs thought and elaborated in
colour in order to give rise to new forms. Three centuries of coal mining have shaped the landscape
the landscape and identity of northern France. If this black land continues to bear the scars of its industrial
industrial past: slag heaps, headframes and mining towns, the urban environment has been transformed and new natural spaces have been created.
and new natural spaces have emerged.
This exhibition brings together two perspectives that highlight the impact of human activity on nature, its
on nature, its soaring beauty and its raw complexity.