Where the Sea Holds Us (2026)
La Napoule Art Foundation Residency, March 2026
Installation with handmade paper with seaweed, mirror, and seawater
Developed within the tomb tower of Château de La Napoule, this installation explores how connection persists across separation, time, and unseen space.
Positioned above the tombs of Henry and Marie Clews—whose remains lie apart yet were intended to reunite—the work introduces a reflective surface activated by seawater, forming a subtle threshold between absence and presence.
Rather than functioning as a singular narrative, the installation operates as a system: dispersed elements held in relation through reflection, moisture, and light. Handmade seaweed paper extends this logic, carrying oceanic material into the space and suggesting continuity between bodies, environments, and memory.
This project initiates an ongoing inquiry into distributed forms—structures in which connection persists across separation, and a single system unfolds through multiple parts. This line of inquiry extends toward ecological systems in which connection operates beneath the visible surface.
The Tomb Tower at the Château de la Napoule, Mandelieu-la-Napoule, Côte d'Azur, France
Marie, handmade seaweed paper (Busan, Korea) with Mediterranean seawater
Image transfer and surface erosion using seawater
Henry Clews’ tomb, located beneath the installation
Marie Clews’ tomb
