The project

Sillages is a long-term project that involves an unprecedented collaboration between artists and institutions from both island and mainland regions.
The cultural outreach component of the Sillages project is based on an approach that takes into account the unique characteristics of the regions involved. The narratives, imaginations, and modes of transmission are deeply shaped by distinct historical, social, and cultural legacies. Thus, the mediation will be structured as a dialogue to foster a better understanding of the artistic and cultural issues in these island contexts.
Following a successful first edition in 2024–2025, focused on the sensitive geographies of coastal areas and long-term professional support for artists from these regions, the project will continue in 2026 and 2027.

Sillages #1

As part of the first phase of the project, two scouting trips were organized: to Réunion in November 2024 and to Martinique in January 2025.
The artists were selected by a curatorial team composed of recognized professionals with complementary backgrounds, representing a diversity of perspectives. This team, comprising Elsa Briand, Eline Gourgues, Bérénice Saliou, and Ann Stouvenel, reflects a shared commitment to supporting contemporary artistic practices.
This first phase of the project concluded in 2025 with an exhibition of the four artists’ works at the Festival d’art de l’Estran in Brittany.

Sillages #2

Sillages 2 builds on this momentum by initiating a collective reflection: how can we (re)inhabit these territories? Can we bring to light and reveal other narratives, other practices, and other potentials within these often fragmented or marginalized spaces?
Building on the work begun in 2025, Sillages #2 extends the visibility and circulation of the works created by Guy Gabon, Jean-Claude Jolet, Olivier Crouzel, and Andreas Kressig for the Estran Festival. The works will travel to L’Île-Saint-Denis and take their place in public spaces, within the eco-neighborhood surrounding the Maison Fleuve. They will weave their way through the streets, the banks of the Seine, and the island’s gardens and will be on view for one month.
A re-presentation of the works is scheduled for September 2026 at the Maison Fleuve of the cneai =.

Artists

Continuing the work begun in 2025, Sillages #2 aims to extend the visibility and circulation of works created by artists Andreas Kressig, Guy Gabon, Jean-Claude Jolet, and Olivier Crouzel for the Festival de l’Estran.

Jean Claude Jolet is an artist from Réunion. For the past fifteen years, he has been exploring cultural diversity and Creole identity through sculptural installations that question the lingering effects of Réunion’s colonial history.

Guy Gabon is an artist from Guadeloupe. A pioneer of land art in Guadeloupe and Martinique, she creates multifaceted artistic experiments in natural and urban landscapes to highlight the imbalances in our consumer society.

He and she benefited from a creative residency in the Lannion-Trégor area in May 2025, joined by two artists selected through a call for applications :
Olivier Crouzel is a French artist. He develops contextual art combining video projections and in situ interventions that transform spaces into poetic and contemplative forms, questioning a changing world where disappearance and traces become subjects of observation.

Andreas Kressig is a Swiss artist. He develops ephemeral, habitable architectures from assemblages of recycled materials, creating convivial spaces activated by the physical experience of the public.

These four artists weave together a sensitive cartography in which the specificities of each territory reveal universal resonances.
They came together to propose and exhibit contextual works at the Festival de l’Estran in September 2025. They will be reunited in la Maison Fleuve in septembre 2026 to exhibit their work for the second time.

Valérie du Chéné is a French artist whose practice centers on painting, installation, sculpture, and drawing. She explores color, relationships with others, and the experience of space.

Claude Dugit-Gros is a designer. Her work draws on the applied arts in its technical mastery; she develops an open and inclusive body of work featuring simple, accessible forms. She seeks to establish a connection with her environment that is as poetic as it is practical.

Dissemination

This exploration will focus on the concept of “eco-living,” in the sense that inhabiting a territory is not limited to its occupation or use, but also involves a sensitive and situated relationship—with the place itself, the people who inhabit it, and the stories that run through it. 
Each partner will carry out a specific initiative from their own territory, in collaboration with artists they support (from local scenes or elsewhere). These projects, designed in harmony with the territory in question, are linked by a common thread: exploring concrete and symbolic forms of inhabiting, of reclaiming the territory we inhabit, traverse, or imagine… through artistic gestures, transmitted knowledge, or shared narratives.
On Île-Saint-Denis, at Maison Fleuve, cneai = will present an off-site exhibition featuring works by Guy Gabon, Andreas Kressig, Olivier Crouzel, Jean-Claude Jolet, and new works by Valérie du Chéné and designer Claude Dugit Gros, to mark the official opening of the new venue.

Rendez-vous

19 > 20.09.2026 = Inauguration of Maison Fleuve, the new home of the cneai =, located on Île-Saint-Denis, accompanied by a series of lectures and events held at and around Maison Fleuve.
SEPT > NOV 2026 = Île-Saint-Denis program
SEPT > DEC 2026 = Fertilité îlienne & ancrage fluvial

Partners

Driven by a network of dedicated individuals, it is currently supported by the Plaine Commune Urban Community and the Ministry of Culture—DRAC La Réunion—as part of the national initiative “Mieux produire / Mieux diffuser” (“Produce better, Distribute better”)

SILLAGES #2 BRINGS TOGETHER :

• Plaine Commune is a Public Territorial Authority (PTA) comprising eight cities and one delegated municipality north of Paris. These municipalities are united around a shared vision in an area undergoing unprecedented changes within the Paris region. Plaine Commune is also the hub of culture and creativity in Greater Paris.
• Métropole Grand Paris is the only intermunicipal authority in Île-de-France to hold metropolitan status. It comprises the City of Paris and 130 municipalities, including all municipalities in the inner suburbs as well as seven municipalities in the outer suburbs.
• The Documents d’artistes Network (Réseau DDA) is the federation of regional artists’ documents associations. It implements projects developed in collaboration with its members to promote the work and visibility of artists in the regions where its members are active.
• Documents d’artistes Caraïbes and Amazonies is a collection of documents that helps promote and raise awareness of professional artists from Guadeloupe, French Guiana, and Martinique.
• Documents d’artistes La Réunion (DDA La Réunion) carries out its mission to support artists living and working on the island by providing a platform to promote and assist contemporary visual artists from Réunion.
• La Station Culturelle, founded in 2018 in Fort-de-France, Martinique, is a nonprofit organization that promotes access to cultural venues, supports emerging Caribbean artists, and strengthens the connection between artists and audiences. It offers residencies and helps artists develop their professional careers at the local, Caribbean, and international levels, while also providing support for project development.
  
  
  
  The cneai = Centre for Art that is Composed, Navigated, Engaged, Sheltered, and Imagined is a space for research, production, artist residencies, and the dissemination of contemporary art. Since 1997, cneai has been dedicated to the intersection of theoretical research, experimental practices, and support for artists and audiences. The art center houses three collections: Yona Friedman, FMRA, and Multiples, as well as a publishing house and a “Floating House”—a boat designed by the Bouroullec brothers dedicated to artist residencies.