2016-17 – project for Postgraduate Diploma of Applied Contemporary Arts at Massana School, Barcelona, Spain
2017 In material exhibition, Centre d’Artesania Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
2017-18 WAnt exhibition at Radiant Pavilion 2017, Brunswick Street Gallery (Melbourne), Ellenbrook Gallery and Bunbury Regional Art Gallery (Western Australia)
The series “looking out of the window” – in Spanish “mirar por la ventana” – is an evocation of windows of Barcelona and architectural details inspired by tiled roofs, balconies, shutters… The window symbolises the passage between private and public space, between inside and outside, as a means of connection between our own inner emotional and psychic world and the outside world of people and the environment.
I saw the window as an invitation for communication between those two worlds. It is through communication with others that we construct the image of who we are, that we develop our sense of identity. The windows not only let us see what is on the other side, they can also act as mirrors to reflect our image.
My intent at the start of this postgraduate project was to bring together the different media of my art practice: photography, digital art and contemporary jewellery.
Starting from photos of buildings I took in my daily wanders around Barcelona, I then edited the photos and incorporated the digital images I had created into the design of 3D jewellery. During the first semester I worked with photos showing the original colours of the windows in a literal manner in the first 3 brooches.
The second semester we had two fantastic workshops, one with Dutch contemporary jeweller Katja Prins, and one with Spanish jeweller Marc Monzo. They were very inspiring and brought my project to another level.
From there I worked the photos in black and white and added hues of orange and green that I associated with nature: the green of grass and tree leaves, the orange of sunset and flowers. I juxtaposed these warm organic elements of colours with the geometric forms and lines of urban architecture. This process also allowed for the creation a visual cohesion and continuity between the pieces in the series. After many maquettes and prototypes, I progressively left aside the literal image of windows for a more poetic evocation that left space for the free interpretation of the viewer.
blandine hallé 