OCTOBER 2024 / Lulu & Junior by Catherine Blanc
Catherine Blanc is a ceramic artist who is more used to shaping birds and fish. However, when she moved into this country house with a large empty meadow in front, an idea came to her. Thinking back to her childhood and the beautiful white sheep she saw in the fields, she decided to “furnish” her meadow with a sheep that she shaped life-size for fun. For years, his family and friends would see this sculpted sheep when they visited him. Also, they constantly ask her why she would not make it a work in its own right for the public, which she would sell in the same way as her hand-molded ceramics? She promises to think about it, but this project has taken a long time to be realized.
It took fifteen years for Catherine Blanc, who was very busy creating, modeling and exhibiting, to take the time to submit her prototype to a manufacturer to co-create the new version of Lulu (diminutive of the first name Lucien) and give birth to her little brother Junior. Together or separately, inside and out, Catherine Blanc’s sheep dress the space with their immaculate softness. Smooth and shiny, soft and benevolent, they bring a touch of serenity and help to create a haven of peace. When you see them sitting in a garden, sometimes surrounded by “real” farm or farmyard animals, you can’t help but smile. And our two stars even have their own Instagram account since this innovative project is quite distinct from the unique ceramic pieces that the artist usually creates.
The designer warns: there won’t be enough for everyone. Lulu & Junior will be made to order, in very small series. Each copy will be signed and numbered up to a maximum of fifty. Far from the mass-produced decorative sculptures of animals, we are in the presence of a true artist’s work. And this approach is so seductive that Catherine Blanc’s sheep could well travel far. Indeed, the pair is currently exhibited in Toulouse, but art lovers from the North of France and even the United States have expressed their interest in these singular decorative objects. Both elegant and robust, which allows them to withstand bad weather, we may one day find them in meadows on the other side of the Atlantic, who knows?
Currently exhibited at the Oak gallery in Toulouse, Lulu and Junior should certainly join a gallery in the capital soon.
Lulu & Junior : Signed and numbered white resin sculptures. A creation by Catherine Blanc published in 50 copies, sold alone or in pairs
Dimensions: Lulu: 80 x 37 x 55 cm, €8,500 – Junior: 47 x 33 x 22 cm, €5,500.
OΔK Oneofakind Gallery
