Novê SalmLa "S" Grand Atelier

For its autumn exhibition, the BPS22 welcomes the artists of La "S" Grand Atelier, centre d'art brut & contemporain [centre for outsider and contemporary art] located in Vielsalm, in the heart of the Belgian Ardennes. Thanks to its geographical location – outside the typical art circuits – and its need for a direct and continuous connection with its studios (drawing, painting, textiles, printmaking, graphic storytelling, ceramics, digital work, music, dance), La "S" swiftly began developing groundbreaking co-creation residency projects. In doing so, La "S" Grand Atelier has established itself over the past thirty years under the direction of Anne-Françoise Rouche as a pioneering example of sharing and interweaving; a place where talents can flourish freely, where the usual "disabled vs non-disabled" categories no longer apply, and where barriers between different art works are dismantled.

The title of the exhibition "Novê Salm" is a play on words coined by Mr Pimpant, an artist from La "S". It references Ardennes folklores (the Witches’ Sabbath of the Macralles, spell-casting witches) as well as the Walloon etymology of Vielsalm (Viel Salm meaning "old salmon"). Novê Salm, or "New Salm", imagines an ideal village as envisioned by the artists of La "S" (who live with intellectual disabilities) and the guest artists in residence. Inventing a universe of creativity and collective life, the artists at La "S" reimagine the world, disregarding conventions and standards of performance or perfection. Taking as its starting point this symbolic concept of a new village where a collective spirit is at work, the exhibition offers a narrative journey through all of the BPS22 spaces.

On the edges of this Land of Salm, where forest legends and beliefs permeate the imagination of its founders, the artists reflect on the forest region surrounding the La "S" studios, a setting that often influences its works and collaborations. Plunged into semi-darkness, the museum’s first room is thus designed as a natural, mystical environment, filled with obstacles that these artists take on and creatively transform. Following this come themes such as human fragility, resilience in the face of illness and disability, and the power of creative cooperation. There is also the highly pertinent question of the different forms of language (verbal, non-verbal, invented, adapted, etc.) that lie at the heart of these exchanges and artistic output.

Beneath the glass roof of the BPS22, the exhibition explores the core of the La "S" studios – spaces of sharing, where all the obsessions and desires that drive each individual come together: love, the body, vehicles, the individual house, the banquet, cinema, Johnny Hallyday, and more. All these themes are explored through such varied media as graphic works, three-dimensional pieces, installations, sound pieces, videos, 3D animation and digital creations, musical performances, and publications. Whether or not they have a mental disability, the artists experiment with every possible medium and address everything that fuels art and life!