HOPSCOTCH, photographic installation by the collective uneparjour
L’Art A l’Air, journées du Patrimoine, botanical Garden Museum, La Rochelle – France
Hopscotch is a work by the international collective uneparjour (oneaday) which brings together European, African and American photographers. The website uneparjour was born in 2006 as a gathering point. The photographers create a picture every day and publish it. The collective puts up exhibitions and photographic actions as well, often in the open air.
The Hopscotch project originated in the bringing together of images of skies and feet, in particular those of African women gathered by Amsatou Diallo in Mali in the early years of the collective.
On June 14th 2014 at 1 p.m. GMT, nineteen photographers took pictures of their feet and their sky. For the photographer, the sky is the great provider of light, the great provider of images.
When playing hopscotch, children push a pebble on squares which symbolize the path from earth to heaven. This gesture has printed in our memories the relationship between feet, earth and heaven. One hops on one foot from square to square, avoiding to fall outside, in hell. Sometimes around heaven, a girl or a boy is waiting for us.
Text: Little Heart
Scenography: Max Jacot, Béatrice Darnal
HOPSCOTCH,
homage to Louise Loppé, called Hopscotch (1860 Embrun – 1954 La Rochelle), explorer, aunt of Etienne Loppé (1883-1954), doctor, first curator of the Museum of Natural History and Ethnology of La Rochelle.
From her many trips to India, Africa, North America and central Europe, encouraged by her friend Alexandra David-Néel, Louise brings back many olzliths – painted pebbles bearing symbols or images of eyes.
The scientific study of her collection allows her to establish the universality of the game of hopscotch, a passion of her whole life.
This game, which can be found under various forms, is composed of earth, heaven – or paradise, and of hell. A flat pebble pushed by the foot enables passing from one to the other. In 1925, she donates her collection (19 pieces) to the Museum of Natural History and Ethnology of La Rochelle.
This collection of olzliths was shown to the public till September 1954, after which it mysteriously disappears from the showcases.
Just as mysteriously in September 2014, some of these pieces begin to emerge in the garden of the Museum. This natural phenomenon remains unexplained.
Picture credits
Béatrice Darnal / France
Amsatou Diallo / Mali
Harandane Dicko / Mali
Karine Erne / Suisse
Elise Grandjean / Suisse
Andreas Hoefert / U.S.A.
Max Jacot / Switzerland
Little Heart / France
Ariane Littman / Israel
Danielle Magny / Canada
Philippe Mahassen / Switzerland
Lucian Muntean / Romania
Yves Phelippot / France
Livio Piatti / Switzerland
Eric Pijnaken / France
Pascal Pretti / France
Suzanne Kuhuparuw / Netherlands
Jorrit Timmermans / Netherlands
Tristan Zilberman / France
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