Jardin Mécanique

Tiny Room is a re-programmed space to introduce the work of young designers. To inaugurate it, india mahdavi invites Wendy Andreu who presents her “Jardin Mécanique” (mechanical garden)—focusing on a series of vases produced at the Cirva during the artists’ residency.

In her approach, it is the process that transcends the function of the object and dictates the formal outcome : Wendy meticulously cuts and welds metal rigs, that act as moulds in which the glass is then blown. As glass naturally behaves in ways that we cannot control, Wendy Andreu allows it to guide her creative process. She experiments with forms and their subsequent patterns, as the latter warp according to the blower’s breathing. Each vase, blown in a calibrated metal cage, is unique. Within this controlled environment, glass is given a slice of freedom, allowing the material to express itself and generate this randomness.

Image: Wendy Andreu, Vase Squeeze, Squeeze series, 2024, production / realisation Cirva, Marseille. © Wendy Andreu, photo © Vanni Bassetti