For the "Everyone to the Farm" exhibition at Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche, Paul Bert Serpette presents a vision of rural life firmly rooted in the perspective of antique hunters. Under the discerning eye of Gilbert Kann, in collaboration with Le Bon Marché, a selection has been chosen from the treasures of over 350 vendors, like harvesting, as the seasons change, what the land has to offer.
Thus, matter dictates the rhythm of China:
The ceramics, with their rounded or primitive silhouettes, sometimes pierced by light, sometimes marked by an almost earthly gesture, or adorned with floral motifs. Lamps, vases, bowls, terrines, a zoomorphic pitcher… Signatures: tables by Roger Capron, tableware by Albert Thiry, Christine Robert, Huguette Bessonne, Robert Picault, mirrors by Mithé Espelt…
Wicker, bamboo, rattan , tightly woven or more freely, shaping baskets, chairs… Their presence tells of the farm as a place organized by daily gestures.
Wood, patinated, waxed, with clean lines, oscillating between brutalism, folk art, and Arts & Crafts, furniture born of necessity rather than design. Bowls, benches, a set by Guillerme Chambron, stools by Marcel Gascoin, a solid pine wardrobe from the Vienna Secession, a unique chestnut bench by Lou Fagotin, chairs by Olavi Hänninen…
And, flitting among these materials, the bestiary. Vigilant roosters, animal forms tucked into a handle, a beak, a relief. These figures are not decorative: they watch over, observe, inhabit the objects.