Elegiac Residue - Belfast

My first day in Belfast felt grand. Seeing Seven Int. come together in person was both a joy and an achievement.

We spent the day installing our exhibition at the Belfast Print Workshop. There was a sense of harmony, determination and kindness. No ego, no pressure, but a shared sense of purpose and excitement. The energy in the space was tangible, we were creating something valuable together. Almost like a ritual…?

I was eager to test the work in front of an audience, even though this series is still very much in progress.

The frames I ordered online were not of great quality but in the end I quite liked the result. To accompany the frames I prepared little bags of incense on which I wrote the name of the work and the incense ingredient I used to make it. It’s a first attempt to blend visual and smell to attain a sensory artwork.

The installation vaguely resembled an Aesop shop…there is still a lot to experiment in this direction!

Spending time in this collective environment made me reflect once again on the value of community. And highlighted how much I miss this this in Paris. I think we all felt that the exhibition was not just about displaying individual work, it was about fostering a collective dialogue, collaboration, and experimentation, and share it with an audience.

After the installation we went for dinner and a pint of Guinnes in the oldest pub in Belfast, the Crown. An unbelievable beauty. I could spend hours observing the variety of details here. A true architectural artwork!

Finally, on February 6th the first exhibition of SevenInt. (and my very first exhibition outside school!) opened at the Belfast Print Workshop.

The gallery was packed, I didn’t expect so many people to come to our opening!

Something interesting happened midway through the opening. People were extremely respectful and were not interacting with the bags of incense. So I added a small pink post-it note that read  “you CAN sniff and touch the incense bags”. This revolutionised the way the audience related to the artwork. It moved, actually it expanded, the focus. It provoked curiosity, playfulness, and even childlike reactions. I noticed a different light in their eyes. This is something I want to pursue as I proceed in my practice and research. The sense of an invitation to the ritual.

This experience deeply impacted me personally and artistically. "Elegiac Residue" is living proof of  what Seven Int. stands for—collaboration, critique, and discussion beyond the enclosed “safe” space of the university. This was not just an opportunity to show work but also to test the dynamics of us working together. And I believe we passed the test brilliantly. The journey with Seven Int. is far from over, and I look forward to seeing how our collaboration evolves in the future. We are already talking about having another upgraded version of the exhibition in July.

Beyond the exhibition itself, my time in Belfast was filled with inspiration. Karen, the best guide one could ask for, introduced us to the local art scene and took us to visit her studio complex and Karl’s. It was great to see Lucy’s hearts in real too!

I get back home with the heart full of love and the mind full of ideas. Thank you Belfast, thank you magnificent SEVEN.