The Rhythm of Nature – Ceramic Sculpture by Virginie Hucher

The minimal yet organic works by French artist Virginie Hucher echo the colors, forms, and structures of nature and, at the same time, they replicate the fluidity and harmony that emanate from music and dance. While rooted in the abstract tradition, the artist’s ceramic sculptures, paintings, drawings, and photographs connect us to the whimsical formations that branches or rocks take under extreme weather conditions.

Hucher, who grew up in Paris and is based in Picardy in northern France, is also a dancer, something she extrapolates to her creative process considering her compositions as “scenographies” guided by the rhythm of her movements. The artist’s performative approach to artmaking is linked to her strong connection to nature which reveals itself both through her working process, in which she documents the ephemeral works she makes on sand, snow, or water and uses them as inspiration for future artworks, and in the earthy colors and naturally sourced materials she utilizes. Hucher’s ecologically friendly studio is the ideal setting for this approach as it is located in the heart of a forest which offers the artist endless inspiration.

Virginie’s gestural and intuitive methods are evidenced in Botanica, a series of small-scale white-colored ceramic sculptures described by the artist “as structures that come together to create a new species.” It seems as if through these works the artist is trying to recreate her own dreamy landscape permeated by stylized organic forms which bring to mind winter settings. In her own words, she is creating a “geometric abstraction of nature.” Importantly, next to the connection with nature, when looking at this series, one can also distinguish an architectural component reminiscent of the works of architects, such as Gaudi, that sought to replicate natural forms in his world-celebrated designs.

Overall, the works of this environmentally-conscious artist, who has been described as an archeologist of nature, explore the Yin and Yang, the opposing yet complementing principles of art, nature and life. For this spiritually oriented artist, art is an inherent part of her life. As she says “Life is my art, life is creation, and my art is my life.”

virginiehucher.com

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