LA LOUVIÈRE.- Keramis is exploring the power of artistic collaboration with two exhibitions on view this autumn/winter season (November 16, 2024, to March 2, 2025). The exhibitions celebrate the creative synergy between artistic couples, highlighting how shared lives and mutual support enrich artistic practice.
The first exhibition, The Obscure Object of the Clearest Desires, showcases the work of Rachel Labastie and Nicolas Delprat, a couple who share a life and studio in Brussels since 2011. Labastie, a ceramic sculptor, and Delprat, a painter, have carte blanche to transform Keramis's white box space. This marks their sixth collaborative exhibition, and they have created an integrated scenography where each artist's individual identity is not only preserved but also energized by the presence of the other and the surrounding architecture.
Labastie, born in Bayonne in 1978 and a graduate of the École Nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Lyon, works primarily with clay, both fired and unfired. Her work explores themes of transformation, metamorphosis, and the stories of women throughout history, both famous and anonymous. Her previous work at Keramis, Femme proue, explored the forced exile of women sent to Guyana. Her work also touches on themes of societal alienation of women, colonialism, and the sacred in art and nature, often incorporating performance art drawing from her Romani heritage.
Delprat, born in Rennes in 1972 and also a graduate of the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts de Lyon, focuses on the interplay of light in his paintings. He explores the representation of light in art, from the invention of photography to its physical presence in minimalist art, drawing inspiration from artists like Dan Flavin and James Turrell. Keramis, with its light-filled architecture, provides a particularly fitting environment for his work.
The second exhibition, Jeanne and Georges Vercheval. The Possibility of a Portrait, focuses on the partnership of Jeanne and Georges Vercheval, long-time friends of Keramis. This exhibition offers a unique blend of feminist activism, photography, and ceramics.
Georges Vercheval, a photographer, documented his wife Jeanne's activism for women's rights, including her work with the Marie Mineur in Wallonia and alongside Maria Moreau, a worker famously fired by Boch for her activism. The exhibition features a series of black and white portraits of ceramists active in the 1960s and 1970s, taken by Georges, alongside ceramic pieces from the museum's collection. The exhibition also recognizes the Verchevals' shared commitment to various causes, culminating in Georges's directorship of the Musée de la Photographie de Charleroi until 2000.
Both exhibitions emphasize the power of collaboration, highlighting how generosity, perseverance, and the sharing of personal resources can shape artistic creation. In a related display within the contemporary collections room, works by 25 female artists pay tribute to Jeanne Vercheval's feminist activism. These two intertwined exhibitions provide a compelling look at the intersection of art, life, and shared purpose.
