The story of La Chapelle is indeed a love story - or rather the story of several loves - each enveloping the next one - like Russian dolls which are discovered one after another - all entangled within a larger one. In this way the biggest story - or perhaps the first - is that of my parents, who met in April 1985 during an ordinary university party and decided three months later to travel to Turkey together. They packed two sleeping bags - a tent - a stove - coffee - cans and whatever else they could fit into the trunk of a Renault 5. That summer they never saw the Bosphorus. My mother’s father, Joseph, was visiting Athens at this time and invited my parents to meet him there. It was in that way that my father and grandfather met for the first time – in Greece. Joseph couldn’t afford very much. So the «hotel», as it turns out, was actually a whorehouse where he had booked two nights near the Plaka market. Neither the filth of the rooms, nor the moans of the guests could stop my parents from falling in love with each other, with Athens and with Greece.

They spent the following weeks travelling around the country - from Meteors to Cape Sounion - from Kokkino Nero to Kalamata - from Corfu to Naxos... They could not imagine that thirty-two years later they would return to this island with their three children - my two sisters and I - and that they would fall under the spell of an old ruined house hidden behind the unruly vegetation of an abandoned garden at the

entrance of the Kastro of Chora.Soon they meet Father Georgios Palamaris - a young priest who - noticing their love for the old stone - made them discover the imposing patrimony of the Church that he is in charge of maintaining and renovating.

This is how - one winter evening - my parents found themselves on a huge terrace facing the Agios Antonios Chapel and the Monastery which adjoins it. The place is unique - full of a singular atmosphere -dense and welcoming. They both felt it. It is an intuition difficult to describe or to express - a bit like the one they felt for each other when they first met - and a bit like the one they had when they passed this abandoned garden and ruined house. For several weeks La Chapelle is the object of their thoughts.Their intuition turns into an idea: to rehabilitate this place to make it available for artists. That was in January 2021. In July 2021 - my parents - my sisters and I welcomed the first resident of La Chapelle Saint-Antoine - Marusya Borisova Sevastyanova - a Russian painter...

THE FAMILY

CLÉMENTINE

A graduate in Communication, she has always been looking for ways in which to connect with others, as well as to show others vhow much she values them. Today she works as an agent for artists in the fashion industry. Eager for knowledge and understanding of the human mind, she has been studying for more than a year to become a psychotherapist.

SOPHIE

After spending 5 years in Montreal, where she obtained a Master’s degree in Business Administration, she joined the ESCP Business School to study International Business & Diplomacy. The adventure of La Chapelle Saint-Antoine, however, convinced her that Art is a powerful form of diplomacy. In order to reconcile her new convictions with her academic skills, she now aims to join an artistic institution with international influence.

JEAN-BERNARD

In 1985, he created a 3D visualization software company that wasbought out successively by large American corporations. He remained at the head of his company for nearly 30 years while taking charge of larger strategic departments. He ended his career as Visualization Software Vice President at ThermoFisher. A few years ago he decided to leave everything behind and retire with Ariele to the shores of the Aegean Sea.

ARIÈLE

As a child she spent hours in the studio of her grandfather a painter. For her studies she chose a business school with an international trade program. A globetrotter at heart she always wished to combine her professional life with travel. She worked in a large French company then became teacher, where she was able to pass on her energy and experience to her students. Passionate about travel and eager to discover - she criss-crossed the planet with her family. But each time she found herself back to Greece. She finally settled down, made friends and now contemplates the infinite blue and light of the Mediterranean every day in Naxos.

BENJAMIN

Having just graduated with a Master’s degree in Business Law, he prefers to pursue a training in documentary filmmaking at Ateliers Varan rather than prepare for the bar. He directed a documentary in Corsica about the writer Jérôme Ferrari (Prix Goncourt 2012). After this documentary’s production, he retired for two years to write his first novel. Between Paris and Naxos he works as a journalist and focuses on his second novel.

VISION

«Although we have heart at work,

Art is long and time is short.»

Charles Beaudelaire,

The Flowers of Evil

Coming from families of entrepreneurs and becoming entrepreneurs/artists ourselves - we know what creation requires in terms of self-confidence - personal investment - audacity - tenacity - rebellion - discipline - madness - intelligence - but also and above all... time.

Creation is to be where what has always been possible has not yet happened. It penetrates where no one has ever gone before and it is perhaps not a coincidence if the country that all creators cross is one of solitude - the one that opposes the individual to withdraw from the world - or at least to escape from their own - for a time... This country has as many banners as there are places. We have decided to plant ours above a Chapel so that time and space - the two terms of this arithmetic that we cherish - serve to mobilize all the forces necessary for the birth of what we believe in : creation.

But Man is not God and what he creates with his time and in his space is irrevocably inscribed in an era. Ours is in all respects decisive, crucial. Never in its history Man has been so urgently compelled to (re)tell his story; to (re)present himself, to (re)define himself, to (re)invent himself, to (re)mythologize himself, to (re)center himself, to (re)create himself. We are convinced that in order to go beyond our era and generate the next one it is imperative to grant ourselves the possibility of doing things differently - to try out otherness to multiply experiences - to allow ourselves countless initiatives - immeasurable failures - vain attempts - but also and above all surprising successes which - inevitably - will increase our hopes and multiply our wills. We wish to offer a framework for these upheavals - to take part in these changes by stretching the time allotted for creation so that the heart that is at work in so many of you - creators - can show it to this world - and bequeath to the next - the courage that is and will have been yours.

NAXOS

THE ISLAND

Largest island of the Cyclades - strategic crossroads for many civilizations (Classical, Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman)- Naxos is still today by its central geographical position an important economic and social pole of the Cyclades archipelago.

With a variety of landscapes mixing fertile plains - forested hillsides, swampy areas and arid coasts - Naxos has always been self-sufficient. Its ground water allows an abundant agriculture and its size a varied breeding. Ironically, the island has always been turned inland. The villages of Chalki and Apiranthos - historically the richest - and both located in the very center of the island - are evidence of this. Attached to this nourishing land the Naxiotes pass on from generation to generation the innumerable olive groves - the impressive terraced vineyards and the secret orchards where they meet on Sundays to consume the fruits of a careful work.

THE CITY OF CHORA

Chora - the main city of the island - has more than 7000 inhabitants. Built on the side of a hill - it houses at its top the Kastro - the historical part of the city. It is made up of narrow streets - houses belonging to the local aristocracy as well as numerous buildings inherited from the Venetian era and influenced by the Catholic Church. For a long time it was neglected by its inhabitants who - for more comfort - preferred to move to the surrounding residential areas. Today the Kastro of Chora is the object of numerous renovations undertaken by actors willing to revive an exceptional heritage. The project of La Chapelle Saint-Antoine is fully in line with this logic of revitalising a district with incomparable charm.

THE RESIDENCY

HISTORY

La Chapelle Saint-Antoine is located in the heart of the Kastro - in an old Venetian house which became a monastery in the early 17th century until the beginning of the 20th century. Agios Antonios - the small chapel that adjoins the monastery and which gave its name to the residency - although in a decrepit state- adorns beautifully this unique architectural complex

PROGRAM

From April to November we welcome two artists per month free of charge. The selection is open to all artistic disciplines and nationalities. During their residency, each artist has a room - a private bathroom - as well as a personal workshop. The artists share the kitchen - the main room serving as an exhibition gallery during «open days» - as well as a terrace of nearly two hundred square meters facing the sea and the mountains.

From April to November

1 month residency

2 artists per month

2 workshops

2 rooms

2 bathrooms

PARIS-ATHENS-NAXOS

PONTS DES ARTS

The Pont des Arts connects the left bank of Paris (at the level of the Institut de France) to its right bank, (facing the Cour Carrée of the Louvre Palace). The result of a meeting between a French family and a Greek, La Chapelle, humbly, wants to be a bridge between two shores of Europe while also opening to the other shores of the world. To live in a country is not only to live there but also to have the possibility to take part in its destiny; to be, at one’s own level, an actor, a citizen. Europe offers its citizens the possibility of a de facto dual nationality. It offers the possibility of creating bridges between people and their respective cultures. To be part of this new territory, to take part in its identity, we have chosen the Pont des Arts. It seems to us that this initiative comes at an opportune moment for our two countries and for their artists.

PARIS

Paris is in the process of regaining its position as a major center of the world art market without losing the vitality of its local artistic fabric, as has been the case for other leading capitals. Artists’ incubators are multiplying (POUSH Manifesto, Artagon, Villa Belleville, Le Wonder, Le 6B etc.),

French galleries are exporting more and more, and foreign galleries (large and small) are flocking there to establish their gateway to the European continent. In addition to a cultural sector historically subsidized by the State - the country is now open to large-scale private initiatives (Louis Vuitton Foundation, Bourse du Commerce, Lafayette Anticipations etc.). Today - a city with an already solid market and a still-vibrant ecosystem - Paris is reclaiming its image as a scholar and a city conducive to thought, reflection, exchanges and intuitions. Timeless and a little rebellious - it stands up against short-term or efficiency injunctions - which have proven to be far too incompatible with the act of creating and the desire to invent.

ATHENS

If the crisis of 2010 pushed many young Greeks to leave their native country to find job opportunities that match their qualifications the crisis of COVID and the economic recovery of Greece have encouraged many of them to return to their country to take part in its renewal. Strengthened by their experiences abroad they have come to enrich a dynamism initiated by compatriots with their own unique culture which today makes Athens a European capital with a

strong identity. Artistically this dynamism was reflected in the holding in 2017 in Athens of Documenta 14. Two years later the Goulandris Foundation opened its new museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. In 2020 the city inaugurates the country’s first National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST) in the Koukaki district. The DESTE and NEON Foundations and the arrival of international galleries such as Allouche Benias, Rodeo Gallery or Gagosian also contribute to make Athens not only a cultural center turned towards its past, but a real city-destination for contemporary art. Encouraged by a growing institutional fabric - an influx of artists from European capitals that have become too expensive and always in search of large and affordable spaces - many curators follow the movement to make Athens an emerging and unavoidable place of European Art.

ARTISTIC BINOMAS

To be able on our own scale and through Art to be at the initiative of a new cultural bridge between France and Greece and between Greece and the rest of the world is for us a great source of fulfillment. By being there each month at the origin of a meeting between a Greek artist and a foreign artist, we hope to give birth to a binomial that will enrich the work of each.

CONDITIONS

DONATION

Each resident agrees to donate one or more of his/her works. This can be works produced during the residency or works previously created. Each of these donations will enrich the private collection of La Chapelle Saint-Antoine, which is exhibited publicly each year.

TRANSPORTATION

The cost of transportation is the responsibility of the artist or the organization that represents him. On site, the means of transportation are also at the artist’s expense.

MATERIAL

The artist may order art materials online from a fine art store located in Athens. The Chapel will take delivery.

LIFE ON SITE

Food expenses are paid by the artist. However - depending on the season - the artist may be able to use the fruits of La Chapelle’s garden. Dinners given during culinary residencies are paid for by La Chapelle and are therefore free for the artists.

EXHIBITION

At the end of each residency, La Chapelle organizes an «open house» for the public to see the artists’ work and to interact with them. The artist commits to prepare the scenography of this day.

COMMUNICATION

The artist agrees to provide a photo portrait before each residency which will be used to promote his/her work on social networks and on the website. The artist also agrees to provide an interview for La Chapelle Saint-Antoine’s magazine.

TOOLS

The Chapel provides artists with an internet connection and an inkjet printer.

PARTNERS

If partners are unable to accompany the artist during the one-month residency, they are nevertheless allowed to join them for a few days.

APPLICATION

Each application must be sent by email in English or French, in pdf format, mentioning the subject «Application».

contact@lachapellesaintantoine.com

The application file must contain the following documents and should be delivered as a single PDF document:

• A portfolio

• A resume

• A short presentation (2 pages maximum) of the project you wish to work on during the residency.

• The month(s) of availability. Please indicate an order of preference.

SCHEDULE

The application period runs throughout the year preceding the upcoming session.

For the 2024 season - The open call period runs from 03.12.2023 untill 21.01.2024 at midnight.

La Chapelle Saint-Antoine will inform the selected artists by email during the month of February.

We are aware of the time involved in putting together an application and apologise in advance for not being able to respond to all requests.

La Chapelle Saint-Antoine reserves the right to invite one or more artists during a season.

THE ORCHARD

THE PROJECT

The orchard is a place of agronomic experimentation with the objective of preserving the vitality of the earth. Every year we learn countless lessons about the interplay of living things - and it is with great humility that we try to participate in their protection and stimulation - taking into account the specificities of a climate that tends to be more and more arid and a development policy that comes up against the hydric limits of the island. To us, the orchard symbolises the purpose, the overcoming that we must do nowadays in our relationship with the world: create to enrich it and to enrich life.

THE ORCHARD

The orchard of La Chapelle is located in the heart of the green valley of Melanes - 8 km from Chora - between the villages of Kourounochori and Mili.

The orchard of La Chapelle covers an area of 1300 m2, divided into 5 terraces dominating the valley. It has nearly 200 fruit and citrus trees (orange, tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, medlar, cherry, mulberry, apricot, plum, olive, quince and even a persimmon tree). The trees and plants are irrigated by the Kouros spring - located further upstream. The spring has always supplied a system of canals that run through the valley. One of them crosses our orchard and fills a water tank recently built to optimise the use of water through a drip system.

THE HARVESTS

Three harvests take place each year. The first - from December to February - concerns citrus fruits (orange - mandarin and lemon trees). The second one - from May to July - concerns most of the fruit trees (medlar trees - apricot trees - cherry trees - mulberry trees - plum trees etc.). Finally - the third - at the end of October - concerns the olive season.

The harvests are the occasion of epicurean and convivial moments. Often accompanied by friends, chefs, locals and artists, we concoct all sorts of jams - conserves - oils - cosmetics or even alcohol that we enjoy over lunches in the shade of the trees or dinners under the stars.

STONE HOUSE

At the entrance of the orchard stands a small stone house of about 45m2. A place to live, work and meditate welcoming the founding members of La Chapelle and all those who wish to participate in one way or another in the preservation of this rare and threatened ecosystem.

A place of striking beauty - ancient calm and suspended temporality - the orchard is an endless source of solace, inspiration and determination. The orchard feeds the soul of all those who walk through it.

FIGURES

200 trees

55m3 water tank

45m2 stone house

100 kg Jam

100 kg food cans

60L oil and liquor

VILLA APOLLONIA,

EXHIBITION SPACE

Once a year - Villa Apollonia becomes an exhibition space for the La Chapelle Saint-Antoine collection. The goal is twofold: to highlight the works of the residents we receive, while making them part of a collection under construction. This event, outside the walls of La Chapelle, is one more opportunity to gather around art in a place with multiple possibilities of arrangement and enhancement of the work of the artists.