NES - Astraea

Astraea

12 x 12.5 x 100 cm

2019
Unique work signed on the base by NES, a French female artist and metal sculptor.
Sculpture in Steel and Bronze
Vernie
Delivered with invoice and authenticity certificate
Excellent condition
Delivered via Colissimo with tracking

Career path

Nes is a Bordeaux-based artist based in Médoc. She was born in 1979. A metal designer, she creates sculptures and furniture from reclaimed metal pieces. Her work has a strong presence, a definite identity that draws from a baroque universe and is heavily inspired by punk iconography.
Early on, this young woman oriented herself towards artistic creation. It was in 2003, as she was completing her university studies with a bachelor's degree in Applied Foreign Languages, that she discovered the art of working with metal during a trip to Cuba. This discovery, which she experienced as a true revelation, led her to refocus her studies. She completed a qualifying training in metallurgy at the IFIP in 2004, followed by a specialization in 2006 as an industrial and space-oriented welding technician. While continuing to explore contemporary artistic creation independently, she also completed her training by becoming a qualified pyrotechnician in 2008.
Her quickly recognized works by the art world stand out for their strong uniqueness and have earned her several articles in the press (see press kit). In 2007, she won a Défi-Jeunes, a program implemented by the Ministry of Youth. For her, it is a true catalyst that propels her toward professionalism. From that point on, she is frequently solicited at regional, national, and international levels. In 2009, she represented France at the international Francophonie Games competition and exhibited at the UNESCO Palace in Beirut. In 2010, she was invited to UNESCO in Paris, where she showcased her work during a solo exhibition. As the national laureate of the Envie d'Agir program, she received the 2nd prize in cultural creation awarded by the High Commissioner for Youth. At the regional level in Aquitaine and Charente, she received the 2nd prize for art design from Rotary District 1690.
Cotation Drouot at the public auction 'Young Contemporary Creation' (March 22, 2014, Hôtel Drouot, Paris).


Artistic approach

When I was five, I visited with my parents the torture museum of the Inquisition in Santillana del Mar.
The capacity of a human being to make others suffer has horrified and fascinated me at once. I have been frightened by the ingenuity with which humankind has devised so much monstrosity. My work transcends this monstrosity through an appearance of gentleness that hides what humanity can harbor in its violence. I want to show the dark side of humanity, the human experience of suffering, the ability of man to conceal the horror he buries deep within himself, in order to highlight the passage from shadow to light.
By releasing her gesture, Nes reveals through her sculptures a baroque and poetic universe. She draws on the strength of metal to bring the viewer into her world of arabesques, curves and chains. Power in the material, fragility in the airy forms born from a complex imagination. From darkness to light, from the chain to the lace of steel…
A baroque universe, another more playful one, both converge toward the same objective: to breathe life back into forgotten industrial elements. Playing with appearances, shadows, light and contrasts, working with hostile materials until guiding them artistically toward softness and lightness. Her artistic signature, expressed through the use of chainsaw chains, earned her the press nickname the "Iron Lacemaker." Ambivalence between form and matter, subtlety of the plastic language, repurposing of materials.
The questions that drive me: how to exercise discernment and live in society, considering that each person may have a portion of monstrosity within them?
What are the limits of extreme human behavior?
How can one detach from daily reality, from the illusions of our perception, in order to ease this suffering and stop hiding this dark part of ourselves?
How can one free themselves from their prejudices and distrust appearances?
How to live with this dark side of the soul? Meditate, accept, deny, rebel, give up?

Some exhibitions

Exhibition “Resonances” for the 500th anniversary of Sainte-Chapelle and artist residency (09/09–06/11/21; residency: 21–25/09/21, Le Trampoline, Vic-le-Comte (63))
Exhibition and selection at the '3rd International Sculpture Competition' of the European Biennale of Metal Art of Stia (02/09-05/09/21, Stia, Italy)
International symposium “Metal sympozium” and exhibition on the “Metal Trail” (11–15 June 2018, Mlada Boleslav, Central Bohemia, Czech Republic)
Exhibition during the SNBA 2018 Beaux-Arts Salon (Dec 13–16, 2018, Carrousel du Louvre, Paris)
Exhibition 'Arts of Fire' at the H.R. Giger Museum (17/10-23/10/15, Gruyères, Switzerland)
Capa Gallery Sculpture Exhibition (12/09-21/10/2014, Madrid, Spain)
Exhibition 'Step by Step' (09/05-09/06/14, Louveigné, Belgium)
Exhibition at the Feria Internacional del Arte de Granada (7/05-12/05/12, Churriana de la Vega, Granada, Spain)
Exhibition at "FIARTE 2012" (April 8–20, 2012, Churriana de la Vega, Granada, Spain)
Exhibition at the “Salón internacional de Mujeres Artistas” (6/03-22/03/12, Maracena, Granada, Spain)
Permanent exhibition of the sculpture 'Carpe Diem': private collection of the Riviera Hotel & Beach Lounge (from 14/05/11, Corniche El Manara, P.O. Box: 11-4021 Riad El Solh 1107 2150, Beirut, Lebanon)
Exhibition of fresh works created during the art symposium "Riviera Fusion" (May 12–June 30, 2011, Riviera Hotel & Beach Lounge, Corniche El Manara, Beirut, Lebanon)
Exhibition and selection for the international competition of the Jeux de la Francophonie. Residency. Talk in a school in Sidon. (27/09/09-06/10/09, UNESCO Palace in Beirut, Lebanon)
Permanent exhibition of the sculpture 'Pulsations and Convergences': private collection of the Grand Lycée Franco-Libanais (as of 06/10/09, Beirut, Lebanon)

Public Procurement / Public Collections

Public procurement by the Lacanau town hall: monumental sculpture "Fòrga" created in homage to the heritage site "La Forge" - Permanent exhibition in front of the town hall (07/24, Lacanau (33))
Order from the Interregional Directorate for Juvenile Judicial Protection (DIRPJJ) – Southwest – (Trophies for the 'Taste Journey' – (13.5 x 17 x 35 cm - 11.5 x 16 x 29.5 cm - 11.5 x 14.5 x 26.5 cm) - (07/23))
Acquisition of the sculpture 'La Force d'âme' by the Town Hall of Vic-le-Comte and the Departmental Council of Puy-de-Dôme (Le Trampoline, Place de l'Olme, Vic-le-Comte (63) (13/11/21))
Acquisition of the sculpture « Thétis » by the Departmental Council of Charente-Maritime (Atrium of the Maison de la Charente, La Rochelle (17) (20 August 2018))
Acquisition of the sculpture 'The Dark Tower' by the town hall of Aiguillon (47) (10/12/16)
Acquisition of the sculpture "The Three Doors" by the Beychac et Cailleau media library/artothèque (05/10/16)
Public commission by the Town Hall of Soulac-sur-Mer: sculpture created during the urban residency and public performance 'Urban Welding Art'. (03/05-12/05/13, Place de la Basilique, Soulac-sur-Mer)
Public tender by UEAJ 33. Practical internship with youths under the Judicial Protection of Youth, aimed at social and professional integration (2013, UEAJ 33, Bordeaux)
Public procurement of the General Council of Gironde. 'Mission Agenda 21' Trophies (15/10/2012, General Council of Gironde, Bordeaux)
Public procurement of UEAJ 33: creation of paintings for the training restaurant “Le P'tit Creux.” Practical internship with youths from the Judicial Protection of Youth, aimed at social and professional integration (09-10-11/05/12; 14-15-16/05/12; 05-06-07-08/06/12; 11-12-13-14-15-18-19/06/12, Listrac-Médoc workshop)
Public procurement by the Avensan town hall: 20th anniversary of the twinning with Castrillo de Murcia (04/2012)
Creation of a monumental mission cross (Feb 2012, Cussac-Médoc Town Hall, Gironde)
Public contract: creation of a monumental sculpture for the entrance of a media library (Inauguration on 10/09/11, Beychac et Cailleau)
Production of trophies for the Michelet Challenge. Practical internship with young people under the Judicial Protection of Youth, aimed at social and professional reintegration. (2010/2011, UEAJ 33 (Educational Unit for Juvenile Judicial Protection of Gironde))
Creation of sculptures for the school parking lot. Project carried out with the participation of the children. (2009, Avensan Town Hall (33))