Students from the Montpellier Artistic Project(MAP) association invite you to come and dissect a scene from Godard's "Le Mépris" during artist Sylvain Fraysse's exceptional exhibition at the Bâtiment Historique de la Faculté de Médecine Montpellier-Nîmes. We caught up with them to talk about this ground-breaking project.
How did this project come about?
The " Camille " project was born in 2022 from the desire of members of the Montpellier Artistic Project to introduce students at the Montpellier-Nîmes Faculty of Medicine to new forms of art. MAP's 2021-2022 office contacted the Fonds Régional d'Art Contemporain(FRAC) with a view to creating a joint project, and this is how the collaboration with Sylvain Fraysse, visual artist, and Céline Mélissent, in charge of the FRAC's public and collection distribution, came about.
What does this artistic experience entail for visitors?
The exhibition is a sensory experience in light and sound based on Jean-Luc Godard's film Le Mépris. The artist uses the Salle de Dissection in the historic building of the Faculté de Médecine Montpellier-Nîmes to "dissect" a scene from the film. In this mythical scene, the director dissects the body parts of Camille, one of the main characters, played by Brigitte Bardot. Sylvain Fraysse recreates the scene's color filters using gelatin on the windows of the dissection room, and also cuts the film's original soundtrack to 24 frequencies. In this way, he dissects the very essence of the scene.
What exactly is MAP?
The "Montpellier Artistic Project" is an association under the law of 1901, founded in August 2020 by three medical students who wanted to organize artistic activities within the faculty.
Over the past 3 years, the MAP office has grown and we now offer various workshops and activities through our four poles: Applied Arts, Oratory Arts, Literary Arts and Culinary Arts. We provide equipment and introductory sessions in a variety of artistic practices, as well as organizing art competitions on our social networks, and an eloquence contest every semester.
You can find us through our mascot, a chameleon who goes by the name of Léon Art on Facebook, as well as on our Instagram account.
Why is this project so important to you?
It's important to us because it enables us to bring the Faculty's historic building to life by opening up a room that was previously closed to the publicWe've learned a lot from this project, and hope it will appeal to students and visitors alike. We've learned a lot from this project, and hope it will appeal to students and visitors alike. What's more, we're very proud to be part of the Montpellier Capitale de la Culture 2028 bid, and to be able to get involved in the dynamics of the Metropole. It's a colorful experience that allows us to bring students together.
What support have you been able to rally?
We had the opportunity to work with Sylvain Fraysse and the FRAC via Céline Mélissent, who was our key contact in the development of this project. The latter was fortunate enough to be selected to take part in the Montpellier European Capital of Culture 2028 bid, and we were thus able to benefit from financial assistance for the realization of the exhibition. The TaM supported us by allowing us to put up posters in certain tramway and bus stops in the Metropole to promote the exhibition.
We have also received support from the University of Montpellier(UM) through the Fonds Solidaire d'Initiative Etudiante (FSDIE), and the UM Arts and Culture department with Eléonore Szturemski, as well as from the Faculté de Médecine Montpellier-Nîmes. Special thanks to Dean Isabelle Laffont and Professor Gérald Chanques for their support and logistical assistance.
Practical information about the exhibition
Historic building of the Montpellier-Nîmes Faculty of Medicine
2 rue de l'Ecole de Médecine
34000 Montpellier
Exhibition open to the public from March 22 to April 18:
- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 2 - 7 pm
- Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Students of mediation during the opening days, open to the public.
On Tuesdays, guided tours will be offered by students from the Montpellier Faculty of Education's Master of Mediation program.
- Tuesday, March 28, April 4 and 11 at 3, 4 and 5 p.m.
- Tuesday, April 18 at 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Additional mediation slots offered by association members will be announced later on the event's Facebook page.
Every five years, a new dean's team, made up of vice-deans and project managers, is appointed by the Dean to represent him or her within the framework of defined missions. This year, Prof. Stephan Matecki was elected Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board. Read his interview here: find out more about his background and the projects he hopes to implement as part of his mission!
You've been elected Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board. Could you tell us a little about your background and speciality?
I'm a physiologist in charge of the Pediatric Functional Explorations Unit and a research team within the UMR CNRS 9214- INSERM U1046 unit at IURC. I am also co-director of the Biology-Health Master's program. Having studied medicine in Paris, I then did my internship and Physiology assistantship in Montpellier. I've always been committed to scientific training and to supporting our students in their scientific careers. I was able to develop a whole range of support for our youngest students by setting up a double health and science curriculum designed for all health students. This curriculum was recently accredited by INSERM, and has been integrated into the School's national network of Medicine-Science courses. As a member of the Scientific Advisory Board, I have also been able to develop this support strategy through a system of very early and regular mentoring of all our candidates for the hospital-university careers that will make up our Faculty of tomorrow.
How do you plan to reconcile your professional activities with your role as Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board?
When you love something, you don't count the hours. But as a physiologist, my professional obligations are less demanding than those of a clinician or surgeon. What's more, I feel that my activities as head of the Health Biology Master's program and head of a research team are highly complementary to my role on the Scientific Advisory Board. A role which, I would remind you, is very much focused on the mentoring and benevolent support of our young people who are keen to embark on a career in the university hospital sector.
What are your contributions and objectives? What projects would you like to carry out in your role?
I'd like to promote the visibility of our Montpellier-Nîmes medical school in terms of its scientific policy, in line with the Montpellier and Nîmes university hospitals, by highlighting its core business, which is training in the healthcare field, and its driving force, our students. I'd also like to step up my support for the young candidates' scientific advisory board, based on a caring and mentoring relationship. The aim will be to train them to reflect on their scientific positioning, which will guide them in their future scientific careers. This will enable us to better advise and guide the candidate, so that he or she can arrive at the day of the audition in complete confidence, since the career path and scientific positioning will have been endorsed beforehand. Lastly, I'd like to continue developing the dual health-medicine curriculum, by adapting it to the ever-increasing demand, especially since the introduction of the student's career pathway, which will be taken into account in the matching procedure.
What motivated you to accept this appointment?
Above all, it's the pleasure of giving our youngest all the help they deserve. Their enthusiasm and attentiveness is a real driving force for me, almost a rejuvenating bath.
The 18th edition of Primavera will be held on Sunday March 19, 2023 at Montpellier's Jardin des Plantes. Exhibitions, conferences and a rare plant sale will take place from 10am to 6pm.
1. A golden opportunity to acquire an exceptional plant
Primavera's rare plant sale is sure to delight botanical enthusiasts and Sunday gardeners alike. Imagine being able to admire a little piece of the Jardin des Plantes in your living room or garden every day. Green will be this spring's decorating trend!
2. A day of knowledge
The 3 not-to-be-missed conferences:
- 2:30 pm: "Plant nomenclature: from pre-Linnean authors to the Shenzhen Code" by Pierre COULOT, pharmacist-biologist, founder and
president of the Société botanique d'Occitanie, specialist in the Fabaceae family. - 3:30 pm: "Les mystères du labyrinthe" by Andrée LAFON. Her passion for literature, theater and psychoanalysis has led her to write books
with a strong emphasis on depth psychology. - 4:30 pm: "Pierre Richer de Belleval's Intendance restoration project and its labyrinth" by Professor Thierry LAVABRE-BERTRAND, Director of the Jardin des Plantes.
3. A blend of art and nature
Ceramic artist Anne Tassin invites you to visit her exhibition "Inspiration végétale".
4. Come and discover the recently renovated Rabelais monument!
Sculpted by Jacques Villeneuve, the monument, dedicated to Rabelais and the pleasures of life, was inaugurated on November 6, 1921 by French President Alexandre Millerand. The monument was donated by students to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the Faculty of Medicine, where Rabelais studied in 1530.
The University of Montpellier, the Montpellier-Nîmes Faculty of Medicine and the Fondation d'Entreprises du Jardin des plantes de Montpellier have all contributed to the restoration of this monument.
5. It's springtime!
Who doesn't love strolling through the paths of the Jardin des Plantes in spring? It's the perfect time to see the garden's luxuriant flora come back to life after the winter. Primavera is the perfect excuse to discover or rediscover Montpellier's Jardin des Plantes.
