HARVEST SUPPER | LÉA PORRÉ

Léa Porré’s artistic practice involves the creation and exploration of worlds that are more or less fictional, as well as close to our reality. In her works, the artist stages historical events rewritten through a process that generates alternative scenarios, imagining and constructing narratives with the aim of blurring, almost fading, the boundary between reality and fiction.

Porré draws on the meaningful power of archetypes and symbols: the inspiration for Harvest Supper (2023) stems from ongoing research on the idea of the sacrificial king, inspired by the essay The Golden Bough by James Frazer. Specifically, she studies ancient myths and rural rituals to explore the relationship between a ‘divine’ body and the earth – understood as soil – and how, once buried, it can influence its fertility.

Harvest Supper consists of two elements – frame and painting – which hold equal weight and importance within the whole artwork.
The Gothic style that usually characterizes Porré’s works is entrusted to the frame: black, flat, and with irregular edges, like flames rising from a lit fire. Within it, three human organs – a kidney, heart, and stomach – appear to float on the canvas, set against a slightly blurred bright red background.
Not immediately noticeable, a peculiar element, yet one well-integrated into the composition, steals the scene: a picnic basket, decorated with a bow on the handle and filled with flowers, is positioned at the bottom of the frame, occupying a significant portion of the painting. Made of the same material and color as the frame, this element serves as a point of connection, linking the ritual of sacrifice – represented by the painted organs – with the traditional peasant custom of holding a feast after the celebration.

The visual power of Porré’s artworks is both magnetic and unsettling, effective on both an aesthetic and content level. It not only captures attention but is capable of keeping the viewer trapped within its dimension.

Léa Porré
Harvest Supper, 2023
Framed painting, 110 x 70 cm
Ink on canvas, wood, acrylic, varnish
Courtesy the artist

Léa Porré, Harvest Supper, 2023, detail.
Framed painting, ink on canvas, wood, acrylic, varnish. Courtesy the artist.

28/09/24