A group of people who live in, or are involved in various ways with, the Prairies Saint-Martin in Rennes commissioned an artwork to raise awareness of the issues surrounding this site.
Long used as an industrial area on the outskirts of the city centre—home to activities such as tanneries—the Prairies Saint-Martin is an emblematic site in Rennes, now transformed into an urban nature park. The commissioners, in all their diversity, work through a constant back-and-forth between history and the future: preserving the memory of the place, developing gardening activities, protecting vegetation, studying the soil, and sharing and promoting these elements.
Aiming to foster a multidisciplinary, cross-cutting approach at the intersection of spatial planning, life sciences and democracy, the commission creates space for dialogue between artistic methods of production, scientific research and participatory inquiry. Committed to supporting the creation of a work shaped by the spirit of the site, the commissioners will also ensure its dissemination and mediation to the public.
The artist Elvia Teotski, selected to respond to the commission, develops a practice that explores the connections between scientific and artistic fields. By involving the commissioners in her research—building on previous projects—the work will serve as a form of return and sharing for the users and inhabitants of this changing territory, understood over time, from its subsoil to its surface.
