Presentation of artistic project at Quai Albert I Studios

From left to right: Jean-Luc Biamonti, Françoise Gamerdinger, Céline Pagès and Eva Dmitrenko. © Government Communication Department / Michael Alesi

At the initiative of the Department of Cultural Affairs, Eva Dmitrenko and Céline Pagès presented their artistic projects to the press at their studio on Quai Antoine I. The presentation was attended by Françoise Gamerdinger, Director of Cultural Affairs, and Jean-Luc Biamonti, CEO of Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer.

After being allocated an artist’s studio by the Department of Cultural Affairs, the two young women, both graduates of Pavillon Bosio, the Monaco Art School, will be able to develop several projects, chief among them the creation of an artist’s book produced entirely on site. They will pool their respective artistic practices – paper design combined with large-format embroidery – as well as their several years of experience in research to produce new pieces and entirely self-publish their book.

The two artists also unveiled the project they have been working on for Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer, following a competition to commission a piece of public art – the creation of a temporary design on the theme “Ma vie en rose” (“My Life through Rose-tinted Glasses”). They came up with a bed of pinwheel “roses” in a variety of colours and sizes, which will dot the area between the Hotel Hermitage and the Boulingrins Garden.

The artists’ workshops on Quai Antoine I were opened in 1996, in accordance with the wishes of Prince Rainier III. The aim was to welcome artists who could make a contribution to the development of artistic life in the Principality. Arman, Kees Verkade and Jean-Michel Folon have all occupied the studios. Today, three artists – Fernando Botero, Matteo Mornar and Michel Aubéry – are working there on a long-term basis. The six other studios managed by the Department of Cultural Affairs are designed to host artists-in-residence, offering them their own workspace where they can express their talents. The studios are awarded on the basis of a competition open to all artists, for a period of six months, which can be renewed once. Applications are submitted twice a year to an expert committee chaired by the Department of Cultural Affairs.