29/05/2026
art & about: in Vientiane until tomorrow "Song of the Earth" LLydia Ebdon-Bordeorde at IInstitut français du Laos Français du Laos, Gallery Alix Aymé.
With musical background from Paul Carter and Jules Pardon and original pieces from Supersomnik.
Lydia Ebdon-Borde long time friend of i:cat gallery as exhibiting artist, collaborator with local artists; introducing workshops & concept exhibitions, including "over & over " focus on the Mekong River, supporting the gallery as artist and gallery assistant. For her solo exhibitions Lydia has worked over the last 6 months. So wonderful to see Lydia's art.
In her words at the opening: Opening of Song of the Earth, 8 mai 2026 Français du Laos, Vientiane Lydia expresses her journey as an artist.
Good evening to each of you,
It’s an immense joy and privilege to share this moment with you, thank you deeply for your presence.
It is in Laos that I was born an artist and it is not by chance. It is the life of the earth, the soil of this beautiful tropical land, its chromatic vibrations that awakened me to its living essence which springs forth at every moment and from all sides… to the violence of its elements, the immediacy of the created world, which surrounds and fascinates us, unshakable in face of its own destruction, because stubborn and confident in its capacity to renew itself.
Shaping, translating and taking the marks of the singularities of what is: this is my artistic approach through varied printmaking technics.
Several months ago, I discovered the works of Italian artist Giuseppe Penone who has been working directly with nature for decades. This encounter provoked a creative dazzle of which result you can see here and now with Song of the Earth.
This work, guided by the creative process, and the call of textures and shapes, gives you an ode to the earth, in its beauty, power and fragility. I also here share some thoughts about the place of humanity in the living world, thoughts that I want saturated with hope.
Le Chant du Monde marks its prints on cotton handwoven in Savannakhet, all colours and shades come directly from plants, flowers, leaves and soil pigments from several provinces in Laos.
Textures and shapes are printed from natural elements, woven or shaped: I let you guess what they are made of. No line or mark has been drawn or painted, all have been rubbed, hammered or pressed.
I would like to thank the IFL and Alicia in particular for having opened the doors to this work and allowing me to show it today and for the next 3 weeks.
I am grateful to my family who very graciously let me invade our living space in the last 6 months. I can’t promise it won’t happen again 😊.
My thanks also go to Christy Stavinowsky who has been my sounding board for this project. Christy, I always marvel at your intelligent approach to my work.
Thank you to Viengvisouk Dalakone, Poui, from the textile company Urban Cotton. Poui, not only helped me source 100 m of fabric but also provided much needed encouragement all along.
The musical background is from Paul Carter and Jules Pardon with whom I had the privilege to collaborate on previous art projects (with i:cat gallery) and also a couple of original pieces from Supersomnik. I thank them for sharing their music with us.
Thank you to the friends who secured a ladder here and then and for their encouragements through the ups and downs of such large scale work.
And again, thanks to all of you, for your interest in Le Chant du Monde. I hope you will have a smooth poetic moment, a pause to sense the harmony of what is around us. If the Earth sings, will we hear its song?
