Nicole Dufour’s work is rooted in the observation of living things and nature, whose fragile beauty and silent strength she translates into her art. The materials she uses—plaster, clay, metal, or wax—are transformed in her hands to reveal their poetic vulnerability. Her works explore connection and its ambivalence, as well as repair and metamorphosis.
In Nicole Dufour’s art, each form seems suspended between appearance and disappearance. Her sculptures exude a discreet yet intense presence, like imprints left by time or the memory of a gesture. The artist seeks to capture that precise moment when the material still breathes, when the light caresses the surface and gives rise to emotion.
After training as a graphic designer at the École des Arts Décoratifs, Nicole Dufour studied Chinese at the University of Geneva before embarking on a nearly 30-year journey that took her successively to China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Kyoto. She established her studio in Burgundy in 2006 and has completed several residencies outside of Europe.