The young woman arrived in Lozère at the age of three months. Having become a plastic arts teacher, she also spent part of her time at Villa Malzac, an artists’ residence in Mende.
Villa Malzac, avenue Foch in Mende, welcomes artists in residence. Maëlys Plagnes shares Rodolphe Gire’s workshop, on the third floor. In this room, we discover his works exhibited in frames, most of them small.
Maëlys Plagnes arrived at the home of Pierre and Dominique Plagnes in 1998, at the age of 3 months. She spent her youth between Badaroux and Mende and then left for Clermont-Ferrand to study at the Beaux-Arts for five years.
Teacher in Langogne
She returned to work as a plastic arts teacher at Langogne college. “Finally, we are in Lozère. I loved Clermont-Ferrand, but I’m so happy to have come back. I’ve been doing my job for four years and I love what I do.“, confides Maëlys Plagnes.
The young woman works three days in Langogne, which gives her time to practice her art and riding a motorcycle. “Very young, I was enrolled at Mend’arts, with Brigitte Gauthier who really helped me improve my painting skills. I passed a literary baccalaureate with a specialty in plastic arts. I had up to eight hours of lessons per week. We also traveled a lot with my family, almost everywhere and always around exhibitions. I was immersed in the world of art, thanks to my father who practices photography. Going to see the exhibitions in museums confirmed my desire to continue on this path.“
Multicolored landscapes
Maëlys Plagnes works in acrylic, painting abstract landscapes where the viewer imagines what he wants from the present shapes. “I love interacting with people when they see multicolored landscapes.“She paints paintings in various formats and depending on the period. They range from postcard format to a fresco on a wall. At the moment, she paints on 30/40 formats.
-“I give first names to my paintings. In general, these are people I know, family and friends. Sometimes they are the ones who inspire me, and other times, I paint and the first name comes after me.“
Rodolphe Gire, a friend of her parents, went to the same school as Maëlys Plagnes, in Clermont-Ferrand, and it was quite natural that he invited her to come and settle at Villa Malzac.
“A nice crossover”
“Little by little, I got along well with the other residents. There is a good dynamic and everyone has their own universe. It’s a nice crossover. On the 22nd of each month when an open evening is organized, I enjoy meeting the people who come and discussing with them everything they have seen in the Villa.“
We know Maëlys Plagnes by her artist name Maëlys Debadasaï. She wanted to highlight Badaroux, where she had a happy childhood, and Saigon, her birthplace. “I love my home country, Vietnam and the city of Saigon. I would love to find out.“
