Marylou Chalon's Giant Garden in the Library

Each year, ‘Les Champs Libres’ Library in Rennes, France, invites artists to exhibit in the library. In 2023, Marylou Chalon, was invited to participate and was given complete free reign to imagine how she wanted the library to look.

She shared with us:

"I chose to work on fruit and vegetables and to make a giant garden. There are a lot of things involved in this theme: discovering nature, exploring what we eat but also it’s important to me that every kid can access the vegetables and fruit while in a city. I drew giant fruit and put them everywhere, also on the outdoor display case.

I imagined a game which was a wall of a garden where children can play, plant seeds, water, with a lot of magnets. I made different parts and play times.

During the event kids were invited to make garlands and put them on the ceiling : at the end, there were garlands everywhere. That was so nice to see! There was also a tic-tac-toe, and giant dominos.

Thanks to the library team, we also made a recipe table where kids could put their drawings of fruit salad and soup. This was a very immersive and interactive work, I’m so proud of it and can’t wait to do some others! Thank you to all the children and their parents who joined us for this fun event! :)"

If you’d like to work with Marylou, please contact: [email protected]

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