Le musée de l'artiste (The Artist's Museum)Cathérine Moreno (b. 1970)
Used with permission of the photographer, Catherine Moreno
Used with permission of the photographer, Andries de Jong
20 Rue Jean Jaurès, Vic-Fezensac, Midi-Pyrénées, 32190, France
begun 2002
The site was officially opened as a museum in November 2009.
Born in Marseille, Cathérine Moreno, in accordance with her parents' wishes, studied to become a mechanical engineer. However, after a few years, she decided that her true purpose in life was to be a visual artist, so she left the world of technology. She took basic courses in conservation, worked for some time as a trainee for a local sculptor and, then, as a self-taught artist, began to paint and sculpt.
Around 2002, Moreno settled in Vic-Fezensac, a small community of some 3,700 inhabitants in southwest France. Using mainly recycled materials, she renovated her dilapidated three-story house, first restyling the exterior façade by adding colorful mosaics, friezes, and other decorative elements. She next completely and abundantly transformed the interior as well: there are mosaics on the floors; frescoes on the walls; dozens of paintings representing such images as Christ, realistic portraits of people and naturalistic scenes of early rural life; sculptures and busts of a variety of people, mostly modelled in clay; painted glassware encased in molded cement; constructed arcades, ornaments, and decorated pillars; and displays of found objects and utensils used on farms in olden days.
On the first floor, Moreno constructed a chapel with a dome embellished with circular decorations; here, Christ with a lamb and the Virgin Mary are depicted in mosaic. The concept of this chapel is compatible with her paintings of Christ; that is, with no specific religious connotation, but referring in general to purity and humanism. Freestanding creations including a fountain, a decorated well, a bird feeder, a sofa, a vault, a boudoir, and others are in process. She uses a mixture of clay and straw to build up her structures, in the same way that building was done in rural areas of France 300 years ago.
This dynamic art environment, always changing, was officially opened as a museum in November 2009. Visitors are able to see the complete home interior, including a small interior garden, and from the airy top floor can enjoy a lovely view of the surrounding area.
~Henk van Es
Vic-Fezensac, Midi-Pyrénées, 32190 fr
Latitude/Longitude: 43.758044 / 0.306733
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