The artist is in residence in Monts-de-Randon for an artistic project around Lozère cheese and its shapes, in collaboration with the Graines de plume school. An exhibition of the work is proposed from June 28 to 30, 2024.
“I would like to taste cheese like you eat ice cream”, laughs Marion Talou, originally from Toulouse, to summarize her work. Behind this teasing phrase, the young woman is a real researcher into new forms of cheese, through work on molds. Designer artist in residence in Monts-de-Randon, she has been working on this project for several months, with students from the Graines de plume primary school, supported by the Ateliers Medicis. An exhibition will be offered from June 28, 2024, in the association hall in Monts-de-Randon.
An artistic project with Lozère students
“This project, around cheese, is very anchored in the territories”, comments Marion Talou. A way to honor the Lozère lands and local dairy specificities. It was here and nowhere else that she decided to continue her research, a project initially planned as part of her designer diploma defense a few years ago: “Food concerns everyone. I had met cheesemakers and I realized that cheese could be considered as a design object. It is possible to mold it, to control its shape. It is a question of rethinking established things, like its forms.”
She worked with the Parisian dairy La Chapelle before being exhibited during the Design Parade festival at the Villa Noailles in Hyères, in 2022, “with cow’s cheese”. After graduation, eShe perseveres with the idea of shapes: “It’s a sprawling project, I have tons of ideas.” She applied to the Ateliers Médicis, as part of the Créations en cours residencies, the aim of which is to strengthen the artistic presence among CM1, CM2 and 6 pupils.e in the departments.
DR – Laurine Habert
She opts for Lozère: “It’s a cycle of twenty workshops, with a class from the Monts-de-Randon primary school. The first phase consisted of exploring the creation of shapes through drawing. We produced lots of figures abstract, we selected a few to work on in volume. We approached two cheese factories in Monts-de-Randon for the creation. (Gaec Pic for cow’s milk and Gaec Tardieu for goat’s milk). The curd was poured into our molds and the refining is in progress.” Today, the few remaining workshops will be devoted to preparing for the exhibition at the end of June.
Ecological molds
Pyramidal shapes, points, balls, subtle curves, cheese according to Marion Talou emancipates itself from its historical forms. “We should see if the shape influences the taste, I don’t have enough perspective”, she specifies. And defends itself against any industrial development: “It would be more tailor-made for cheesemakers.” Ethically, the young woman also works on the materiality of the molds: more ecological, in wicker, wood, ceramic, rather than the traditional plastic: “I have a relatively anarchist artistic approachshe laughs. I like to challenge the established order.” Without making a big deal out of it.
