Lapine’s Paris Adventures: “Postcards from Paris”

Dear fellow Art Lover,

My name is Annemie, and I am a contemporary South African Artist. In 2020 I was extremely fortunate to be chosen to do an art residency in Paris for three months at the Cité des Arts. It was a dream come true to have my very first art exhibition in France!

Once I arrived in Paris, and to curb my creative block after realising the magnitude of this opportunity, I folded a new origami rabbit. I have always loved the intricate art of folding origami, especially rabbits. The folding process forces me to be still, focus intensely and be completely in the moment. I find it both soothing and therapeutic. I aptly named her “Lapine” (French for female Rabbit) and then used her as an avatar for me, an artist who loves to travel and roam the world, a true flâneuse.

I placed and photographed Lapine in various settings during our aimless wandering. This forced me to observe things from a different point of view, investigating my surroundings from a new perspective, exploring new concepts to develop into artworks later. I use Paris as an exotic location of escape, a rich source of influences and inspiration. This trinity of female energy (me, my avatar Lapine and Paris), inspired me to look at things from an unfamiliar perspective.

Seeing the world through these glasses (a bit like Alice through the looking glass), I have discovered so much more than I could ever anticipate, evoking a deeper connection and process of honest interrogation of my surroundings, society, and myself.

I was struck once again by the beauty, complexity, and secrets of Paris, much as is reflective of our own lives.

This series is therefore a very intimate look into my process, as I started to doodle with ink in my tiny sketchbook to put down preliminary ideas on paper.  This is where new ideas start, and how my “Postcards from Paris” – series was conceived.

These notebook sketches expanded into Fine Art Prints of my original Ink sketches, as well as bronze cast sculptures based on these sketches, and I surface pattern designs for use on Functional Art.

You can view them here.

I hope you will enjoy reminiscing this adventure with me!

Love

Annemie