pictures (May 2013) courtesy of Cees van Halderen facade along the main street |
Along the former main road N 83 from Chalon-sur-Saône to Dole that bisects the small community of Damerey in the Burgundy area, France, a decorated facade requires the attention of passers-by.
Life and works
Retired in 1984, Mercier acquired a property along Damerey's main street, a former farm dating back from 1670.
Soon after he had acquired the property he began to transform it into an art environment, doing this as a homage to Manuela Alonso, a lady from Castilla, Spain, he had met in Lyon, who lived in the Chalon area and with whom he had a special relationship.
Mercier embellished the facade of the house with a variety of sculptures of animals, such as a stork, a deer, a sea lion, a peacock,an eagle and cats.
The decoration of the facade is simple in nature compared to what Mercier performed on the courtyard located behind the house.
This courtyard was open (although fenced) along a side street of the main street, but on the other three sides it was surrounded by buildings, so that an indoor area of about 1100 m² was available.
Mercier embellished the inner court with a variety of sculptures, often arranged into scenes. But he also adapted the architecture of the buildings, by adding arcades and building a 17 meter high tower.
the inner court |
But then, one also can meet Neptune and mermaids.....
The tower with stairs on the outside and balconies, all painted in various vibrant colors is an example of singular architecture. Mercier built the tower without having access to a concrete mixer or a construction crane. He did all the work by hand. His construction scaffolding was a simple assembly of stakes.
The video below gives a good impression of the details of the tower.
Mercier built his constructions without a preconceived plan and often he did not ask for a building permit in time. In the course of the years the municipality has provided him with 20 building permits in total, partly in retrospect.
All together, it took Mercier some sixteen years (1984-2000) to establish this art environment.
Roger Mercier, May 2013 |
Roger Mercier died in March 2018 at age 92.
It remains to be seen what the future of this art environment will be. The authorities of the village are positive about the creation, but he municipality is too small to provide the necessary resources to buy and maintain the site.
Documentation/more pictures
* Article on the website of the municipality
* Article (December 2012) on he weblog of Sophie Lepetit
* Article (April 2013) by Cees van Halderen on his weblog
* Article (April 2013) by Cees van Halderen on his weblog
* Article about the site by Sonia Terhzaz on her website Cartographie des Rocamberlus (environments d'art singulier), reporting the visit she paid in August 2022
first published July 2012, last revised April 2023
Roger Mercier
Chateau de Bresse-Castille
33 route de Dole
71620 Damerey, dept Saône-et-Loire, region Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France33 route de Dole
no public visits, visible from the street
streetview
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