Here, the head of the ‘Cador’ emerges and defies time and the Lion itself. There, Morphosis becomes guardian of peace and the lost souls burned on this land by a deluge of fire, patinaed by the rage of the cavalry and the dragons, all the way to the foot of Mont-Saint-Jean….The artist, destined to breathe life into these historic moments and honor the living, offers a glimpse into a war of men and emperors.

An overwhelming feeling overcomes us…

In the depths of this moving memorial, we first discover Panacée, the surprising presence of a young girl in this place seeped in memory and violence. The volume of the bronze sculpture is infused with contrasting features that play amongst the light and the dark. It’s surface is living, breathing, palpitating….

Catherine Thiry wrestles into life forms that have percolated in her imagination since her childhood. In her studio, a stone’s throw from the battlefield of the Marache, she creates and sculpts her world. She captures the power of intention, the suspended movements of men wounded by doubt. Skillfully shaping and manipulating her materials, energy triumphs. She molds the clay with broad strokes, as one would boldly paint a canvas.

The Garde’s alley unfolds, deep, infinite, bathed in sunlight, where the motionless effigies rest, after their long labors. Human faces emerge, challenging us and plunging us into emotion, drawn in by their deep shades of gold and clay.

Catherine Thiry is driven by feeling. In the absence of words, she communes with the clay. She magnifies the present and reveals what unites us, the unspoken truths that lay beneath the surface. Sensual and spontaneous, she wrestles an image from clay, which, when it catches the light at a certain angle, will take your breath away. There is a lightness to her art, forged without fear and with strength and complete freedom.

With her work-worn hands, and a skilled technique based on repetition, thickness and irregularities, she manipulates the clay, forms it, caresses it and creates a carapace. The knotted forms of the neck, back, belly and head emerge, their gazes deliberately blurred. 

In the hands of the artist, the famous forms of ‘Effigy’, ‘Aequanimus’, ‘Sagace’, and ‘Epicène’ are a mirror of our own flaws, the interpretation of our wounds reverberate with a disconcerting familiarity. These sculptures, imbued with profound emotions, echo our own humanity.

Each work by Catherine Thiry is a fragment of infinity. Her creations, cast in original bronze and iron composite, enhances her monumental work and brings them to life. The effigy is living.

Free, fluid and moving, this unique show gathers the singular works of Catherine Thiry from art galleries and individual art collectors from around the world. Exhibiting these works in a place full of history is a unique experience not to be missed.