At a time when our societies are in urgent need of a response to the arrival of migrants, they seem to be retreating into a defensive position. Indeed, Western cultures, gripped by the fear that the foreigner will destabilize their symbolic and practical order, try to escape the effects of a globalization that they themselves have generated. The proximity of the figure of the other forces us to rethink the prism of distance that conditions our relationships [1]. It is inevitable to make a place for these foreigners who will be more than ever an essential element in the identity of our future societies.

The artistic work of Elise Courcol-Rozès, nourished by anthropological research, is thus part of a movement of sensitive reflections on the gestures of the encounter. Through a minimalist installation entitled Orchard, inspired by the Persian carpet, the artist proposes a singular version of the heterotopia of the mobile garden, which is originally the representation of Paradise. Deployed in space, the motifs seem to dictate a code and lead to the creation of an indoor orchard.

All the elements positioned in balance turn out to be governed by an underlying tension. Orchard echoes the very structure of the word hospitality - where the terms hospes - the host and hostis - the enemy [1] - overlap and highlights the ambiguity of welcoming the other. Everything seems to oscillate between two poles; the softness of wool against the sharpness of metal, the suppleness of a cushion against the stiffness of a strap, the curve of wood against the acidity of lemon.

Although the mere presence of visitors may upset the balance of the pattern, they are invited to settle in, to linger, to grab a piece of fruit. The installation is thus thought of as a meeting place that questions the existing borders between individuals, as well as the borders that often stand between the viewer and the work of art. Although welcoming the other is not without risk, Orchard is an invitation to take the risk of encounter, through a temporary space of calm.

- Noam Alon, 2018

[1] Jacques Derrida, De l’hospitalité, 1997