This is where I live and work, next to Lacoste, a small perched village in south eastern France. The hill, is layered in stone walled terraces and was formerly cultivated with vines and almond trees. Nature has settled back in over the past decades into a sprawling growth of trees and shrubs.
My studio has no walls, in order to evacuate the dust created by working stone. My equipment remains minimal, in a context of maximal inspiration, through the seasons, facing the Mont Ventoux.
Comfort is crime, the fountain told me from its rock.
René Char
translated by Gustaf Sobin
We never attain the impossible,
but it serves us as lantern.
René Char
translated by Gustaf Sobin
Finding a rock is an event in itself. Often travelling to different parts of France or Europe, each trip becomes an adventure unfolding into an unknown encounter.
One never knows what will be seen or discovered. This is the primal meeting with the uncarved block.
It was wonderful to be introduced to Gabriel’s work especially in the unique and intimate setting of his homemade home in Lacoste, where his pieces are extremely beautiful and meditative. The stones are ethereal in their hovering with an unearthly luminescence. What is remarkable is that they show no sign of the maker, no hand. They are completely autonomous in their presence even though they are extremely labour intensive, a work that can only be made by someone with a deep devotion and appreciation for the material.
Kiki Smith