The ruined remains of the tower of Chateau de Clerans stands large and strong and invincible. An oxymoron perhaps? But true nevertheless.
Thanks to Joris van Grinsven, Dutch interior architect and artist, the tower has once again fallen in good hands -- of someone who knows how to appreciate a thing of beauty, no matter its age or condition -- and if Joris has to be admired -- and congratulated for one thing only, it is his amazing vision and imagination: here are the 12th century ruins of a once strong fortress, only the walls remaining, only a low remains of an arched opening through which to enter the heart of the open-roofed tall tower, and there -- inside, on the breathtakingly beautiful stone walls, with the natural light of a late September afternoon streaming through the open roof above, he has hung the exceptional work of the Irish artist -- painter, sculptor and photographer -- Tony Crosbie.
Love it or hate it, you cannot avert your gaze from these imposing works. Crosbie is living and working in the Dordogne for three years -- and it has taken a man from the inner city of Glasgow to come to this gentle, achingly sweet countryside of the Dordogne to make us sit up and see what is there, under the surface, not far from our front door.
His photographs exhibited in this unique -- and uniquely fitting 'venue' -- on the rough stone walls of a 12thC tower ruin, stones that change colour with the changing light -- are of the subjects that he has chosen to work with: the inmates of prisons, the homeless, the outcasts of our world -- most of them in bondage, albeit the bondage of their circumstances: A child with an adult soul wearing a crown of thorns; a painfully thin naked woman sitting on her haunches, hugging herself, in an empty room of a derelict building; a pieta - but of a frail Christ-like man with the body of a woman with bandaged wrists on his lap - a body that seems to have been thrown there like you would discard a rag doll on a rubbish heap.
These are not works for someone who looks for the water-coloured prettinesses of the Dordogne. These are reflections of a seamier, sadder side of this beautiful region of ours. And hats off to Joris and to Tony for daring to show us this other side - and for doing it in such a bold, edgy and innovative way!
Artist Statement
Tony Crosbie was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1956. Crosbie, a self-taught artist, was brought up in the inner city in a working class family. Crosbie’s work deals with modern society, and is confrontational, expressive, passionate and extremely personal. His life informs his work. Crosbie uses a multi-media palette, which includes, painting, photography, drawing, sculpture, video, writing, and anything else he can get his hands on to express himself creatively.
His first solo show in 1996 in Dublin, called New Beginning, was an autobiographical journey which dealt with the extremities of addiction and recovery. Crosbie uses his art to reveal the vulnerability and sometimes disturbing journey through his own life.
His work, often described as confrontational and provocative, questions the definition of what art is.
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Chateau Lalinde : The perfect venue for your event
