Camille Cornillon: Shaping the Future of Ceramics
In our New Athenians series, Camille Cornillon, a ceramicist from Burgundy, who has made pit stops in Holland and Belgium before moving to Athens, speaks to Insider on why Athens fosters a nurturing creative community.
ABOUT YOU
What do you do?
I am a ceramicist by training. I studied pottery and ceramics at the Fine Art School of Lyon, France (ENSBAL) between 2013 and 2015 and obtained my Bachelor of Fine Arts, specialised in visual arts, at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy of Amsterdam in 2019. I came to Greece to trace the origins of ceramics. Here, memory becomes legend, the commonplace becomes myth. Athens has a soothing frenzy of the eras that come together, and I try to soak myself in an environment full of history and stories and I try and translate it into pure craft.
ABOUT THE CREATIVE SCENE IN ATHENS
Sum up how the Athens creative scene is different from other cities you’ve lived in.
Unlike other European cities, the Athenian creative scene is freed of expectations while having a strong tradition of high quality craft standards.
Athens to you is:
Fiercely independent, bathed in bright Aegean sunshine and smelly!
Camille Cornillon at her studio ©Louis Maurel
Describe your artistic process. Do you engage with other forms of creative expression, and if so, which?
My initial artistic expression comes from analog photography. I was obsessed with capturing the instant. My ceramic practice still holds a strong affiliation to this need of capturing memory. My shapes translate impressions from different places I have lived in or visited that find their way into one sculpture. For instance, the black and white tiles pattern of a Corsican Church will receive the relief of an Art Deco inspired motif from Belgian architecture. Through my sculptural practice, I give myself the time to digest the world around me, and this leads to a patchwork of references that sometimes can get lost, and I like that. Analog photography is still a tool I use for documentation. Unlike instant photos from phones, the image is brewing in the camera, while the shape is brewing in my hands. In other words, you can say that my practice is a patchwork, a mental map of the places I live in.
Do you have rituals or superstitions before placing things in the kiln?
Before placing things in the kiln no, but when I set a glaze firing over night, I will systematically dream about it. I anticipate whether something goes wrong or comes out amazing.
Where do you head to for some creative inspo in the city?
I go to the laïki, any laïki! It tunes me back with the rhythms of the city!
What art pieces do you collect? Are they functional objects or abstract sculptures?
I collect artworks by friends – in any shape it comes!
What is a current favourite piece you own?
I recently traded a snake of mine with a ceramic backgammon by my friend Jeanne Chardin who is behind @gammongammon, and I just love it. It has a strong emotional meaning to me on many levels! My friend made it; we met in Athens, and we created ceramics together here. The soft colours of the piece remind me of the morning sky!
MORE ABOUT ATHENS
Where do you live? What do you see from your balcony?
I live in Kypseli, from one balcony I see Fokionos Negri and the endless back and forth of buses and mixanakia, from the other balcony, I see an abandoned taverna taken over by a cats gang !
Your favourite thing about Athens? And your worst thing about Athens?
My favourite thing about Athens is the way the energy of this city changes throughout the seasons (+1000 more things). The worst thing is the noise (+100 more things).
Can you describe a quintessentially Athenian sight, sound, and smell?
The most memorable (though not necessarily quintessentially) Athenian sight I ever experienced was a morning where it was snowing: I went on top of Strefi Hill and there was not a soul around. I could see snow falling over Athens, the Acropolis, the millions of buildings, the sea, the mountains, the horizon was so clear despite the snow! The most amazing 360 view!
What has surprised you about Athens as a city?
What surprised me about Athens is the immensity of it!
YOUR FAVE ATHENIAN PICKS
Three galleries/cultural spaces every visitor or Athenian should visit:
Alkinois in Petralona, Okay Space in Kypseli and of course, the Acropolis Museum friezes always make me dream!
Your idea of a perfect evening would be:
It’s very simple: taverna food, open air cinema or concert, drinks with friends.
Your ideal Sunday afternoon:
Coming back from Eleonas flea market and unpacking the treasures I found, catching the sunset.
City’s best kept secret?
That it still has wild, hidden beaches which I don’t want to share for obvious reasons.
Visit Athens Insider Collective at Archelaou 8 for the Entering AEaea exhibition by Diane Alexandre & Camille Cornillon
Opening 21.11.2024 18 h – 22h
