Joanes Simon-Perret
An interdisciplinary artist living in France, Joanes Simon-Perret skillfully works with living plants and growing vegetation. In addition to these large-scale, ephemeral 'growing-sculptures' that Simon-Perret has realised at numerous sites in France and Latvia he works with video, installation and varying other mediums. The ways in which humans engage with their habitats, the loss of contact with agriculture typical to urbanised 21st century societies, the consequent disappearance of localised, rural knowledge are recurrent concerns in his work. Through his artistic practice, Simon-Perret asks what does 'ecology' signify and consist of at present and what it could mean in the future. Simon-Perret also tries to raise awareness on abovementioned questions and concerns through gardening workshops, local actions and interventions, and sometimes direct demonstrations.
Simon-Perret was invited to Frontiers via SERDE Interdisciplinary Art Group that commissioned a large-scale growing-sculpture by the artist to public space for the Riga European cultural capital 2014 exhibition programme. In 2014 Simon-Perret also worked alongside artists Quelic Berga and Saara-Maria Kariranta in a group residency organised by KC GRAD Cultural Centre, Serbia. In 2015, Perret was invited for residency at CAN Centre d'Art i Natura.
