Clémence Ledent

ledent.clemence@gmail.com
+32 474 95 76 47
Brussels, BE

Sunny Side Up
In progress...
(research on a raw chicken, eggs and the table)

Presented during Le Bazar Troué at Salvatore Gent.
Organised with Merel Van den Eynde and Ibe De Cat

Pictures: Lars Bernakiewicz
‍Poster design: Clémence Ledent

Toç in Braida
August 2024
Outisde installations

In collaboration with Claude Perischetti & Greta Petiziol
Magazine presentation by La Seppia

During one week we set our bags in Braida (IT) in order to create and shape the space to host a presentation for the second magazine by La Seppia revolving around collaborative writing.

How can we transform a vast outdoor space into a place to meet, talk, and discuss?
Questioning the difference between the 'natural' and the 'artificial' we tried to shape this environment minimally and respectfully. As of today, much of the environment we inhabit has been moulded by humankind. Saying something is set in a natural environment is just a way to express the presence of trees and grass.

We wanted to underline the complementary aspects of these concepts in space and combined it with a ritualistic approach to the event. The guests were invited to participate in a pilgrimage towards a single tree in the middle of the meadow. This action combined with the subtle installations created a moment of calm in order to start the presentation.

Mise en place corporelle
2022 - 2023
Sewing, digital & hand drawings, writing, collages, photography
In collaboration with Greta Petiziol

As we journey through life, our personalities are shaped by the countless relationships and social interactions we encounter. Today, the very concept of community is under strain. Our social identity is now primarily expressed through the virtual realm resulting in a rise of individualism and a decline in the sense of belonging to a group. This parallel virtual community, which seems so close and yet so distant, is causing a detachment from what is happening within and around us.

To re-establish the importance of collectivity, our project was developed by exploring the expressiveness of emotions through the body and their potential impact within a collective setting. The ‘protest’ proved to be a suitable setting for this exploration. Such events have a long history of expressing feelings and discontents in a community and are still important tools in the shaping of the collective mind.

Within this context, we have created a collection of Prostheses for Protestants that enhance and amplify certain human emotions. Each prosthesis is intricately designed and linked to a specific body posture, which in turn expresses a particular emotion. For the design, we started by analysing the various components of the French police force uniform. This protective but also cold, dark and provocative equipments were reinterpreted. By contrasting the appearance, our prostheses express softness, imagination and organicity, giving them a more human dimension. Ultimately, the resonance of the gathering then lies in the bodily expression of the collective.

‘Mise en place’ French expression, ‘putting in place’. Action of Arranging, placing, putting something in a certain place

Click for the full magazine

L'être noyé / Drowned being
This weight on my head, a burden reminding me that I must regain control. Fragile, I sink to the ground, drowned by this wave of problems that washes me over.

Coeur à vif / Heart in the open
My ideas are clear. When you see me, you cannot stay indifferent, I stand before you like a wall, changing the course of your thoughts.

Se serrer les coudes / Stick together
Our arms in one another, we are now one.

Par terre / Down the ground
Weary, I fall to the ground. Luckily, my fall is softened like the cloud of a last hope.

La Machine
2021
Architectural design; hand drawing, model making

Once a school complex in Schaerbeek, Ilôt 404 was abandoned and forgotten. An empty space which was soon adopted by squatters and social associations, until a fire in 2021 led to its evacuation.
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From the ashes rises a new vision; combining the story of a past and breathe life into the dense neighborhood with a green open space for creation. Our project can be seen as a three-part machine, with raw materials (1) being processed (2) to obtain final products (3). The engine of this machine is fueled by job-seekers from the area, providing work and creating a social workshop. In the bustling city, greenery is often hidden behind blocks of houses. Our project returns this space to the community with the Grand Jardin, complemented by smaller Petits Jardins scattered throughout the project, as remnants of the squatters who once called this place home.

(3) Finished products

To break the confines of Ilôt 404's closed design, I created an opening, an invitation to a public, open, and verdant space. The site left behind by the school is rich and refined. Through the removal of walls, roofs and a corner, new life is breathed into the original building, opening it up to visitors and infusing it with fresh air. The removed bricks are repurposed, used to compose a new structure housing a range of public functions. Here, creations are sold, people are invited to meet and share special moments, while others burn energy on the treadmill.

The design reaches for a delicate balance between openness and tranquility, embracing the natural beauty of the Grand Jardin. The green space, englobed by sociality is left undeveloped intentionally. Weeds and grass grow freely around the paved scene, freedom is given to the neighbours to imbue the space with their own personal touches and create a unique oasis inside the busy city.

Hoofdrekenen
2020
Photography, digital drawing, digital collage

March 2020, the seclusion of the society caused a temporary change in the daily lives. The term ‘freedom’ shifted in sense. A daily walk with my grandmother became one of the few moments outside, fragments of freedom. Day after day, same time, same route. The promenade ended in a meadow. “Will there be people today? And how much?”. We were captivated by curiosity. Each day more people visited the park. Five became ten. Ten became Twenty. The walks became quests to capture that evolution.

Each day I took pictures of the same meadow at the same spot. This Collection of photographs became a collection of a growing number of pedestrians, looking for some sense of freedom in an open field. People seemed to see each other as radio-active, potential carriers of the dangerous virus. Strangers, so many strangers, emaning some kind of green glow, becoming the main actors in an abstract field of nothingsness.
A Recording, an addition, a report.

‘Hoofd·re·ke·nen’ Dutch word for ‘mental arithmetic’ (Hoofd: head, rekenen: counting)

Silk and Stones
2020
Architectural design; digital drawing, model making, photography

Design for an apartment building located in the Papenvest neighborhood of Brussels. I wanted to play with the structure of the building and find a way to make it more than just a structure.
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What are the most private spaces in an apartment, the places to recollect and be alone for a moment?
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Thus, Structural Stones - robust little spaces of tranquility - were carefully placed across each floor, giving rise to a three-dimensional play. The surrounding walls feel like silk sheets wrapped around these massive structures, creating a duality between mass and delicacy on the inside.

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