Sara Blosseville

WHERE LIES THE STRANGLING FRUIT

A counselor stood ready at the edge of the basin, arms stretched out to catch the flying children. With slippery palms the girl gripped the plastic handle of the zipline. Algae had bloomed and spread over the entire surface of the summer camp pond. It had been decided by the older campers that the green layer was disgusting, and if touched, so were you. She pleaded with herself not to accidentally skim the surface with her sneakers. For a moment while sailing over the rippling meadow, she felt safe from what was below. A mere few seconds later, her knees couldn’t stay bent any longer. She felt her lower limbs let go and the cold starting to creep up, first at her toes, then ankles. Curling wet vines twisted around her legs, slowing her trajectory, pulling her lower into the water as clusters of tiny leaves sprawled up her torso, stuck to her arms, and dug into her dampened hair.

After passing through the dense plant layer, she was surprised she could see her surroundings quite well. The water was somewhat clear and it didn’t hurt to keep her eyes open. Slabs of light came through gaps in the surface, shifting around slowly. Nearby shadows came into focus as long, swaying columns of kelp. She looked in the direction of the surface, it was calm. There was no frantic splashing or yelling to find her.

Despite never being a good swimmer compared to the other kids, the girl started to move around with relative ease. Her arms maneuvered in sync, propelling her forward. A beetle rushed across her line of vision and before she knew what was happening, she extended her tongue out to catch it. She chewed and swallowed the delicious snack before letting out a shriek. She examined her left hand and with a shock saw that it was webbed. Four elongated fingers with bubbly tips floated in front of her face. Another beetle swimming among the kelp caught her eye.

The frog blinked slowly and kicked her back legs out hard, she was ready to explore the rest of her new home.

Sara Blosseville (born 1994 in France) is a visual artist living in the woods of Vantaa, in Finland. Her craft covers sculpture, mixed-media installations, textile art and publishing. She mostly uses materials from the home, that she makes, grows, finds, that’s recycled or second-hand. This leads her to using materials from life places and harvests in nature more than art supply shops.
Since she graduated with a Master’s Degree from the sculpture department of University of the Arts Helsinki (2021), her work has been presented in several duo and group exhibitions internationally, from Paris to Mexico, as well as off-site exhibitions online and book fairs.

The artists’s work is currently funded by KONE Foundation.

The exhibitions of this gallery are supported using public funding by Slovak Arts Council. The Slovak Arts Council is the main partner of the project.