The artist exhibits at the Grand Palais
a work inspired by Bleuets

By Christine Mateus LE PARISIEN Monday 23 November 2010 Français

I' t is the story of a love at first sight between an artist, Nathalie
Jacquounain, and the Bleuets district in Créteil. A passion that will
lead them, from this evening until Sunday, to the Grand Palais museum
in Paris (VIII). As part of the Art en Capital event, the artist will exhibit
in the nave a sculpture inspired by this Cristolian district, which is on
the eve of a major renovation.
A sculpture weighing more than 400 kg and 1.40 m high, in aerated
concrete.
“ I have lived in Créteil, Mont-Mesly, for almost twenty years and
yet I knew the Bleuets district only three years ago. I found this
magical place, ”recalls Nathalie, originally from Russia. She had
then been invited to the Imaginaires, a cultural event organized by the
Maison pour tous (MPT) des Bleuets, where the works of several artists
invest the different places of the city. “A neighborhood like this doesn't
exist anywhere else. I first found the architecture of Brossard absolutely
sublime (see box). At the time of the Bleuets, he was very young. No
architect wanted this work because there were only quarries, ”adds the
artist. "Bleuets at the Grand Palais! It's really flattering and it's rewarding.
It proves that we can be the source of great things even if we are cataloged
as a difficult sector, ”says a student. “I will go to the Grand Palace on
Wednesday, says Fernando. With my experience in construction, I
sometimes explained to Nathalie the nature of the different materials
but she is the artist. Everyone here knows her. "
"There is incredible energy in Les Bleuets," continues Nathalie.
However, the first times I came and explained how much I liked the
neighborhood, young people from the city replied: But it's ugly here.
There I said to myself, you found it ugly, I'm going to prove you wrong. "
Under the leadership of the MPT, Nathalie Jacquounain then engaged
in art workshops for residents. In September 2009, the “totem” of the city,
“Bleuets 2009”, was born from this collaboration. “I had already
exhibited at the Grand Palais for the European Art Group. They asked me
what I was working on and I showed the photos of this sculpture.
represented. That immediately interested them, ”continues Nathalie
Jacquounain. “The Grand Palais, some residents, including many of the children,
did not know what it represented. I told them it was like the Eiffel Tower and I
photocopied a map of Mont-Mesly for them where many of the street names are names
of painters who have been exhibited in this museum. "
At the moment, the artist is painting a portrait of residents of the district ...
the Grand Palais has already indicated that he would be interested again

Art en capital, du 23 (vernissage) au 28 novembre,
Grand Palais des Champs-Elysées, avenue Winston-Churchill, Paris (VIII).

Un quartier jugé « remarquable »
T he Bleuets district was built in 1962 by the architect Pierre Brossard.
Without being classified, this heritage is considered "remarkable" by the
State, hence the choice of rehabilitation, as part of an urban renewal
program (Anru), rather than demolition-reconstruction. Ten 5-storey
buildings have been erected over 4 ha. The work, inside the buildings, is
expected in January. An operation with a financial cost of 106 million
euros, where nearly 1,500 residents will have to move gradually to make
way for the site.
C. M.