Giant seeds exhibition

A unique exhibition is being held in the Exotic Garden in Monaco this summer, showacasing the intricacies of enlarged seeds by artist Séverine Cadier, otherwise known as Artgraine.

In total, 30 works will be presented outdoors and in the Louis Vatrican greenhouse, each representing a seed enlarged to between 20 and 100 times its normal size.

Most of the seeds actually come from the Exotic Garden itself and have been entrusted to the artist to reveal their extraordinary shapes through the work of enlargement and molding using various materials.

Séverine Cadier was born in Paris and has been making ceramics since 1992. For the past 15 years she has focused on botanics, a subject which she is passionate about.

As Séverine Cadier explains: “Around us are thousands of seeds: under our feet, on our clothes, in the air, when we walk. Tiny, unnoticed, insignificant. These potential treasures contain the largest trees, the most beautiful flowers, the plants. To reproduce them in a big way is to open ourselves up to a mysterious world, to finally make it accessible.”

“My work of art is very symbolical, suggesting life and death: the seed has to die for the plant to live,” says the artist. “The grain that feeds us has an important economical and ecological issue.”

The Artgraine exhibition will be on show until 30th August at the Jardin Exotique. There is free access upon presentation of the entrance ticket to the garden.