About the artist
Drawing was
my island, my refuge …
—
Christine Sefolosha was born in Switzerland, near Montreux on Lake Geneva shores. As an only child, she grew up under her mother’s care who lovingly encouraged her imaginative streak and left her to explore it freely. Passionate about horse riding, the young girl told herself stories and created worlds inhabited by horses and animals. When she turned 20, and was about to start Fine Art School, life, in an odd turn of events, brought her to South Africa. Her first six years there were spent in a protected environment within the White community. Family was a priority. But she continued drawing. With assiduity. Animals chiefly. Until a time when she became conscious of the harsh realities of Apartheid. Her escapades into the townships confronted her with the gagged, undercover culture of its people. Music, theatre, dance, visual arts: such an amazingly rich, creative streak was revealed to her through her wanderings. This experience would forever change Sefolosha. From then on, the artist realized that she could no longer be content to reproduce just the surrounding reality, but that she must imperatively explore the depths of her feelings, find her place in the world, in other words, realize herself as an artist. Coming home to Switzerland in the early of the 1980s, Christine put all her energy into reaching her goal. Her first solo show in Vevey in 1988 became the beginning of a path that has brought her to exhibit around the world.
La tête à l’envers
Marlène Métrailler
Laurence Froidevaux et Marlène Métrailler
(March 26, 2016)
About the artist
Drawing was
my island, my refuge …
—
Christine Sefolosha was born in Switzerland, near Montreux on Lake Geneva shores. As an only child, she grew up under her mother’s care who lovingly encouraged her imaginative streak and left her to explore it freely. Passionate about horse riding, the young girl told herself stories and created worlds inhabited by horses and animals. When she turned 20, and was about to start Fine Art School, life, in an odd turn of events, brought her to South Africa. Her first six years there were spent in a protected environment within the White community. Family was a priority. But she continued drawing. With assiduity. Animals chiefly. Until a time when she became conscious of the harsh realities of Apartheid. Her escapades into the townships confronted her with the gagged, undercover culture of its people. Music, theatre, dance, visual arts: such an amazingly rich, creative streak was revealed to her through her wanderings. This experience would forever change Sefolosha. From then on, the artist realized that she could no longer be content to reproduce just the surrounding reality, but that she must imperatively explore the depths of her feelings, find her place in the world, in other words, realize herself as an artist. Coming home to Switzerland in the early of the 1980s, Christine put all her energy into reaching her goal. Her first solo show in Vevey in 1988 became the beginning of a path that has brought her to exhibit around the world.
La tête à l’envers
Marlène Métrailler
Laurence Froidevaux et Marlène Métrailler
(March 26, 2016)
About the artist
Drawing was
my island, my refuge …
—
Christine Sefolosha was born in Switzerland, near Montreux on Lake Geneva shores. As an only child, she grew up under her mother’s care who lovingly encouraged her imaginative streak and left her to explore it freely. Passionate about horse riding, the young girl told herself stories and created worlds inhabited by horses and animals. When she turned 20, and was about to start Fine Art School, life, in an odd turn of events, brought her to South Africa. Her first six years there were spent in a protected environment within the White community. Family was a priority. But she continued drawing. With assiduity. Animals chiefly. Until a time when she became conscious of the harsh realities of Apartheid. Her escapades into the townships confronted her with the gagged, undercover culture of its people. Music, theatre, dance, visual arts: such an amazingly rich, creative streak was revealed to her through her wanderings. This experience would forever change Sefolosha. From then on, the artist realized that she could no longer be content to reproduce just the surrounding reality, but that she must imperatively explore the depths of her feelings, find her place in the world, in other words, realize herself as an artist. Coming home to Switzerland in the early of the 1980s, Christine put all her energy into reaching her goal. Her first solo show in Vevey in 1988 became the beginning of a path that has brought her to exhibit around the world.
La tête à l’envers
Marlène Métrailler
Laurence Froidevaux et Marlène Métrailler
(March 26, 2016)
Série entretiens - RTS avec Florence Grivel
Emission "La vie à peu près", mars 2024
—
Un jardin à soi
série de 5 épisodes
Christine Sefolosha est née en 1955 à la Tour-de-Peilz en Suisse. Elle expose en Suisse, en France et aux Etats-Unis. Depuis enfant, elle dessine et fait remonter à la surface du papier japon – ou tout autre support – son univers intérieur. Peuplées de chimères, de fantômes, de paysages où lʹorganique et lʹanimal sʹentremêlent, ces œuvres nous embarquent dans un voyage où affleurent les liens avec lʹinconscient collectif, la métamorphose et lʹalchimie. Sa vie en Afrique du Sud, où elle réside sept ans entre 1975 et 1983, alors que lʹapartheid sévit, imprègne son œuvre dʹéchos africains. De retour en Suisse, elle développe une pratique entre peinture, gravure et dessin, nʹhésitant pas à sʹattaquer aux grands formats en monotype. Si le doute est un des moteurs de lʹartiste, qui se définit comme une " Go Between " – une intermédiaire entre plusieurs mondes –, la prise de risque, la ténacité et la richesse qui se déploient à travers ses territoires imaginaires sont les signes distinctifs de son travail.
Lʹenfance solitaire de Christine Sefolosha se déroule à la Tour-de-Peilz (VD). Si sa mère est à la maison, cʹest une nounou italienne qui sʹoccupe dʹelle. Une ambiance parfois lourde, dit-elle sans amertume. Pour sʹévader, son lieu de prédilection et de rêverie est le jardin de la maison. Lʹexploration est au cœur de cette période, celle dʹunivers sensibles et pas forcément visibles, celle des textures et des couleurs quʹoffre ce jardin clos et celle du dessin pour lequel elle est encouragée par ses parents. Une enfance qui contient déjà les ingrédients de son œuvre future.
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sur le site RTS
> épisode 5/5 (en cours)