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Visual Studies 03

In Focus:
Valentine Schlegel

Working mostly in plaster, clay, and canvas, she is best known for her white stucco fireplaces: sculptural, curving forms that rose like sails from the walls of French homes — each one hand-built, each one entirely singular.
To her, the hearth was not only a functional centre, but a gesture — something tactile, personal, alive.
Schlegel moved easily between mediums. From hand-carved knives to boats, vessels, and vases, she made objects that lived with you — quietly shaping the spaces they occupied. Her touch honoured utility without ever surrendering grace.
A lifelong dialogue with tools, materials, and space, her process was slow and deeply attuned. She worked outside the commercial art world and found freedom in that choice.
Today, her legacy feels more vital than ever — a reminder of what it means to live deliberately, with care for both shape and spirit.
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BELOW Fireplace by Valentine Schlegel, Magasin AMC, Paris, 1965
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ABOVE Valentine Schlegel, Fireplace with a bench, 1964
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