Juliette Dumas, Whale Fluke (Le Grand Bleu), 2018. Vue d'exposition permanente, Charles Library, Temple University, Philadelphie, Etats-Unis
The Charles Library designed as an 'underwater sea cave' by Snøhetta, Temple University, Philadelphia
Whale Fluke (Night), 2018, argile et pigments sur papier marouflé sur toile, 152 x 365 cm, collection privée, Etats-Unis
Marked by life-changing encounters with ocean creatures such as a humpback whale, a pod of dolphins or a sea turtle, off the coasts of Guadeloupe, Mexico, Iceland and even New York where she resided for 6 years, Juliette Dumas inscribes this wisdom received intuitively on large format paintings.
Rencontre avec les baleines à bosse au large de la Guadeloupe, 2019, dans le cadre du Shelltone Whale Project, photo de Valérie Gueit
Inspired by her visits to the numerous caves paintings of France, she created a surface from clay, beeswax and pigments on which, once moistened, each gesture leaves a trace.
Whale Fluke (Night), argile, pigments et gomme végétale sur papier marouflé sur toile, détail
The tail of a humpback whale, thus exactly transcribed in real size, scar after scar, becomes an icon of the principle of resilience and restoration of ecosystems.
Juliette Dumas, Shelltone Whale Project, Guadeloupe, 2019, photo de Valérie Gueit
These paintings were shown in a solo exhibition at Silas Von Morisse gallery, New York, NY in 2018. Vocalist Ami Yamasaki came to perform with her unique voice during the closing of the exhibition.
Whale Fluke (Blue), vue d'installation, exposition personnelle, 2018, Galerie Silas Von Morisse, NY, New York
Whale Fluke (Night), installation view, solo exhibition ANGELS, 2018, Galerie Silas Von Morisse, NY, NY
Vocalist Ami Yamakasi performing the whale fluke paintings, which she 'hears' as sound scores
Sculptures Whale Bones, bois, métal, plâtre, poudre de marbre et charbon, vue d’installation, exposition personnelle, 2018, galerie Silas Von Morisse, New York, NY
Alongside the paintings, Dumas presented large sculptures based on the subtle curvature of a whale bone.
Whale bones are used in Alaska, where they mark the entrance to a sacred site, or the grave of a shaman.
These sculptures, two years later, became ‘The Gateway’, a sculpture in two parts that can either be installed as an Archway, that the viewer passes through, or as a single unit, creating the start of a double helix.
The Gateway, 2020, vue d’atelier, 100 x 310 cm, structure en acier, aluminium, plâtre, enduit et pigments. Structure et socle : Atelier Jordan Da Fonte
Returning to France in 2019, Juliette Dumas created a diptych in 2020 entitled ‘La Terre Respire’, which marks the beginning of a new set of paintings currently in progress.
La Terre Respire, 2020, 60 x 120 cm, argile, pigments et gomme végétale sur papier marouflé sur toile. Collection privée, Etats-Unis
La Terre Respire, 60 x 120 cm, 2020, argile, pigments et gomme végétale sur papier marouflé sur toile, détail