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this picture and the next three from the TECFA webpage |
I am not quite sure if Horace Diaz' art environment really answered to the name of Noah's Arc, but if not, such a name anyhow would have been a good description of what Diaz created and exposed on a terrain he owned south of the community Lodève, in the Herault-area in France.
Life and works
Horace Diaz (1929-2013) was born in Malaga, Spain. In 1938 the family moved to France, fleeing the regime in Spain. Grown up, Diaz had a training as a mason and succeeded in making a career in all kinds of construction works.
One day when he had built a house for a client, he was asked if he also could create a garden around that house, garden ornaments included. Diaz decided to give it a try. He successfully created some ornaments and, his interest in sculpting aroused, this became kind of a passion.
Beginning in 1966, through the years Diaz has made a variety of sculptures mainly depicting animals, some of which were rather large-sized.
For some thirty years Horace Diaz has been active in making sculptures.
Although the site at Lodève's industrial area had a (mosaic decorated) pied à terre, Diaz didn't live there. He had an apartment in the center of Lodève with a balcony decorated with some sculptures of animals ¹.
Exposition
Horace Diaz was a respected sculptor. He was a guest of honor in an open air summer exposition in the community of Salasc in southern France (summer 2009). The exposition showed one of Diaz' well known creations, the giraffe.
Life and works
Horace Diaz (1929-2013) was born in Malaga, Spain. In 1938 the family moved to France, fleeing the regime in Spain. Grown up, Diaz had a training as a mason and succeeded in making a career in all kinds of construction works.
One day when he had built a house for a client, he was asked if he also could create a garden around that house, garden ornaments included. Diaz decided to give it a try. He successfully created some ornaments and, his interest in sculpting aroused, this became kind of a passion.
Beginning in 1966, through the years Diaz has made a variety of sculptures mainly depicting animals, some of which were rather large-sized.
For some thirty years Horace Diaz has been active in making sculptures.
Although the site at Lodève's industrial area had a (mosaic decorated) pied à terre, Diaz didn't live there. He had an apartment in the center of Lodève with a balcony decorated with some sculptures of animals ¹.
Exposition
Horace Diaz was a respected sculptor. He was a guest of honor in an open air summer exposition in the community of Salasc in southern France (summer 2009). The exposition showed one of Diaz' well known creations, the giraffe.
The site doesn't exist anymore
Horace Diaz passed away in March 2013. Following his death the site at the industrial area was cleaned up. The sculptures have been scattered across various private collections.
One of the sculptures, a large crocodile, in 2015 has been added to the garden of the Art Brut Musée in Montpellier in southern France, opened for the public April 9th 2016.
* In her website Les grigris de Sophie Sophie Lepetit has published a large number of pictures of Diaz' creations: November 2012, June 2013 and August 2013
* The same goes for the website l'Herault insolite (March 2012)
Note
¹ as reported by Bruno Montpied, Le gazouillis des éléphants, 2017, p. 386
Horace Diaz passed away in March 2013. Following his death the site at the industrial area was cleaned up. The sculptures have been scattered across various private collections.
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| this picture and the next one from the museum's Facebook page |
The crocodile also appears in the new museum's first affiche.
Documentation
* The same goes for the website l'Herault insolite (March 2012)
Note
¹ as reported by Bruno Montpied, Le gazouillis des éléphants, 2017, p. 386
first published July 2009, last revised November 2017
Horace Diaz
l'Arche de Noë
Zone Industriel
34700 Lodève, dept Herault, region Occitanie, France
site doesn't exist anymore
l'Arche de Noë
Zone Industriel
34700 Lodève, dept Herault, region Occitanie, France
site doesn't exist anymore
Dear Henk, you are just a gold mine ! How you continue to turn these places up just astonishes me ! This one looks like real fun, and the kids might like it too... will have to get down there at some point. Have a great weekend ! Any plans for summer vacation to go look at some of your subjects first hand ?
ReplyDeleteTake care and best wishes, Owen
Hi Owen, It's the snowball effect, I guess, once I started looking after these sites, the one leads you to another. I myself happen to be surprised to locate new spots, and there should be many more in Europe.
ReplyDeleteHave yourself a good weekend too. Did you rise early this saterday (you posted at 04.39 hrs!!)...sometimes I wonder how you can make the time to do all the things you do, having a job, going out taking pictures and authoring a weblog full of literary jewels....
All the best Henk
Certainly Im loving that vision of the giraffe. How it would look like in the night, as a cut off silohuette by the sky full of stars?
ReplyDeleteI agree and also are impressed with the energy and strength Owen always have.
Have a nice weekend also!!
horace dies in march 2013 ... RIP ...
ReplyDelete@ Dom, thanks, I have adjusted the text of my post
ReplyDelete