Retrospective – GITE sculptrice

I had very fond memories of my sculpture classes at art school, and I wanted to return to a different activity for a change from writing and drawing.

Modelling clay was a revelation and a real pleasure. I immediately felt that I would be able to express myself through my work. I wanted to master every stage of making a sculpture, from modelling the clay to glazing and firing. I am self-taught in these techniques and have learnt a great deal through experimentation.

2005–2007 — Attraction

My first creations focused on expressing attraction between beings. I made pairs of fingers, entwined, brushing against one another, touching and responding to each other…

ROUGE&NOIR - 2005 - GITE — ROUGE&NOIR – 2005 – GITE

FUSION - 2005 - GITE — FUSION – 2005 – GITE

COUPLE - 2006 - GITE — COUPLE – 2006 – GITE

JAILLISSEMENT - 2006 - GITE — JAILLISSEMENT – 2006 – GITE

FUSION - 2007 - GITE — FUSION – 2007 – GITE

ESSEINS - 2007 - GITE — ESSEINS – 2007 – GITE

Still driven by the desire to express attraction and passion through these moving bodies, I naturally turned to dance, tango and the sweeping gestures of bullfighters…

TORÉADOR - 2007 - GITE — TORÉADOR – 2007 – GITE

TORÉADOR - 2010 - GITE — TORÉADOR – 2007 – GITE

I had the opportunity to show my work at local amateur exhibitions around Poitiers. Encouraged by several amateur sculpture awards and approached by gallery owners, I went on to exhibit in galleries across France.

2008–2010 — Abstraction, from sea to land

My work then developed into a much more abstract, less figurative world, while retaining the desire to express the attraction and strength embodied by the fingers. Almost without intending to, I found myself in an “aquatic” world, according to those looking at my sculptures. This was when I created what I call “alveoli”: hollows in the clay that echo the projecting forms of the fingers.

I still use these hollows in some pieces, including the metallic bulls.

SEREINE - 2008 - GITE — SEREINE – 2008 – GITE

ACCOMPLISSEMENT - 2008 - GITE — ACCOMPLISSEMENT – 2008 – GITE

LITTORINE - 2009 - GITE — LITTORINE – 2009 – GITE

EVOLUTIVE - 2009 - GITE — EVOLUTIVE – 2009 – GITE

FLORETTE - 2009 - GITE — FLORETTE – 2009 – GITE

2009–2011 — My animal world

ARABELLA - 2009 - GITE — ARABELLA – 2009 – GITE

FUNNY - 2009 - GITE — FUNNY – 2009 – GITE

JOYANTE - 2011 - GITE — JOYANTE – 2011 – GITE

SANGLIER - 2010 - GITE — SANGLIER – 2010 – GITE

FRISOTIN - 2009 - GITE — FRISOTIN – 2009 – GITE

CROQUANT - 2010 - GITE — CROQUANT – 2010 – GITE

New animals appear…

PIOU PIOU - 2010 - GITE — PIOU PIOU – 2010 – GITE

GRENOUILLE - 2010 - GITE — GRENOUILLE – 2010 – GITE

ECLAIR - 2010 - GITE — ECLAIR – 2010 – GITE

That gives me an idea: making lamps…

LAMPE - 2010 - GITE — LAMPE – 2010 – GITE

Always keen to try creating new animals…

ELEFA - 2011 - GITE — ELEFA – 2011 – GITE

CAZADOR - 2011 - GITE — CAZADOR – 2011 – GITE

ROCKY - 2011 - GITE — ROCKY – 2011 – GITE

ASTUTO - 2011 - GITE — ASTUTO – 2011 – GITE

Giving ceramics a contemporary feel…

GIGANTE - 2011 - GITE — GIGANTE – 2011 – GITE

The bull — Constant evolution

The bull proved very popular with art lovers, so I made many of them. This helped me gain greater mastery of its form and develop it, always seeking a stronger sense of power. By emphasising certain features to give it more character and moving away from strict realism, I feel I have reached what I was aiming for and, at this stage, cannot see how to take it further. When I compare a bull from 2007 with one from 2015, the difference still surprises me.