To mark its reopening, the Clément Foundation, contemporary art center in Martinique, will inaugurate its new exhibition space in 2016. It’s an opportunity to admire an exposition conceived of and realized by the Centre Pompidou in Paris, as an homage to the Franco-Haitian artist Hervé Telémaque.
Located within the Clément Habitation, rum distillery and historic site, the eponymous foundation is modernizing to welcome even more ambitious contemporary art exhibits. Following the guiding thread of the foundation with the same passion: to act as a resource for artists who have chosen to live and work in their region.
Even though close to 140 artists have exposed at the Clément Habitation through 49 exhibits, either in group or solo shows, the spaces were too confined – even unsuited – to welcome prestigious exhibitions.
The Turning Point in 2013
Everything turned around in 2013 during the exposition Aimé Césaire, Lam, Picasso: “We Found Ourselves.” An unprecedented success! And a first for Martinique in organizing and international-caliber exposition, thanks to a collaboration of major cultural institutions (Centre Pompidou, Reunion des Musées Nationaux-Grand Palais, Collection Lam).
The result is the expanded exhibition spaces, today spanning 4,800 square feet, over three areas where contemporary materials blend with the natural environment in perfect harmony, on a property of 16 hectares of 100 year-old trees and royal palms.
Industrial and Cultural Activities
This double enterprise, industrial and cultural, offers something for everyone. To visit: the hundred year old rum house, still in use, and the main house, charmingly Creole, classed a historic monument in 1996. To admire: a portion of the Habitation Clément park, labelled the “Remarkable Garden,” featuring a sculpture garden, a palm grove and an outdoor collection of industrial pieces.
No surprise that the Habitation Clément, situated in the magnificent township of Le François on the Atlantic coast of the island, has become over time a major heritage site of Martinique.
* In Martinique, the term “habitation” refers to an agricultural space with plantations, plantation house and agricultural buildings
Address
Fondation Clément
Domaine de L'Acajou
97240 Le François
Martinique