This exhibition brings into dialogue works from the respective collections of the Frac des Pays de la Loire and the Musée d’arts de Nantes, including photographs, drawings, sculptures, and paintings from different periods and by various artists (Max Ernst, Giuseppe Penone, Gina Pane, Jean-Baptiste Ganne, Elena Botherus, etc.). This convergence of perspectives explores the notions of conservation and preservation, fundamental to museums, using the metaphor of plants. This central theme resonates particularly strongly in the work of Ukrainian artist Alevtina Kakhidze, Invasions. This autobiographical narrative in drawings establishes a subtle parallel between the proliferation of invasive plants and the logic of human conquest, making visible the unspeakable, notably the trauma of war. A poetic and peaceful plea, Plants and People brings together works that capture the relationship between plants and people, revealing invisible tensions, the resilience of the fragile, the precarious balance of life, and the desire to preserve what may be destined to disappear.
Exhibition in two venues: at the FRAC in Carquefou and at the Musée d’arts de Nantes.