Terroir

TERROIR

Terroir deals with the history of Boulogne-sur-mer, a coastal city in northern France that has become, in recent years and because of its location on the English Channel, a port of arrival for immigrants trying to reach England or to enter Europe.

The mural, which occupies the facades of two houses located on either side of one of the town’s streets, poses a reflection on the essentially displaced condition of the immigrant, of the one who abandons his own land and roots, risking fragmentation. There’s a stress on the exposed body of the immigrant which is jeopardized not only because of the danger involved in boarding a small boat but, especially, because of the vulnerability that comes with the loss of one’s own references and culture.
The dis-location reproduced by one of the murals, in which a head appears separated from the body, alludes to the displaced subjectivity of migrant eyes intending to understand their new reality from the perspective of their native country.
Next to it, a second mural shows a torso pierced by stones, in reference to the rocks that the French government has placed on the beaches of the region, in a clear sign of hostile architecture that seeks to prevent immigrants from staying overnight, or even docking on the beaches.

With the assistance of Pablo Herguedas.