Visit the Ateliers BOHIN – Incendies by Diana Brennan

From April 1, 2025, to August 22, 2025, artist Diana Brennan presents Incendies, a unique textile and mixed-media exhibition that explores the relationship between destruction and rebirth. Originally from Australia and now based in Bellême, France, Brennan draws inspiration from the devastating 2020 wildfires that ravaged her homeland, destroying habitats, wildlife, and vegetation. Through her work, she examines our connection to nature and its ability to regenerate.

An Artistic Reflection on Australia’s Wildfires

For several months in 2019/20 bushfires consumed millions of hectares on the east coast of Australia. This tragedy had a profound impact on the human community and the native wildlife, where  millions of animals perished. The intensity of the flames  also led to an extensive destruction of their habitat, leaving many  species in danger of extinction. Paradoxically the  flora had a chance for survival as many of the native plants depend on fire for regeneration. Informed by her family still living in Australia, Diana Brennan documented this catastrophe through photographs, testimonies, and studies on local biodiversity. Her work, blending art and memory, captures the violence of the fires while celebrating nature’s resilience.

A Unique Textile and Mixed-Media Language

The Incendies exhibition presents a rich and diverse artistic journey using various techniques:

• Knitted trees stripped of their bark, symbolizing loss and fragility.
• Tapestries of Australian flowers, representing the landscapes reborn after fire.
• Animal ink drawings, depicting emblematic species such as koalas, echidnas, giant lizards, and snakes with their shed skins.

Each piece reflects the delicate balance between destruction and renewal, illustrating the stages from fire to ecosystem recovery.