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Une artiste bretonne en plein essor à San Francisco

7/13/2021

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Marine Gueguen Strage, artiste à San Francisco

Marine Guegan Strage
BREIZH AMERIKA PROFILES | Marine Gueguen Strage

Marine Gueguen Strage est une artiste bretonne vivant et travaillant dans la Bay Area, à Sausalito, près de San Francisco. Elle a partagé avec nous son histoire d'expatriée, son art et ses futurs projets.
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Quel est votre lien avec la Bretagne?


Je suis née a Quimper de parents bretons, originaires tous les deux de l’Ile Tudy, une enclave Pen Sardine en pays bigouden. Aussi loin que nous avons pu remonter notre arbre généalogique au 17e siècle, mes origines sont bretonnes.  Du cote de mon père, les Gueguen sont une des plus anciennes familles de l’Ile Tudy..
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J’ai vécu a Quimper jusqu'à mes 18 ans, passant tous mes étés dans notre maison familiale à l’ile Tudy. Après mon baccalauréat je suis partie étudier à Paris en classe préparatoire puis je suis rentrée au CELSA ( Institut de hautes études - Sorbonne Paris IV). Je me suis alors orientée vers une carrière en agence de publicité pendant plus de 10 ans.

Je reviens tous les ans sans exception en Bretagne et je compte bien continuer voir même y vivre une partie de l’année un de ces jours! 


Quand avez vous déménagé en Californie et comment êtes-vous entrée dans le monde de l’art?


Je suis arrivée en Californie, près de San Francisco fin décembre 2012 après un voyage autour du monde de 6 mois avec ma famille. Auparavant je venais de passer 12 ans a Londres, ayant rejoint mon mari anglo-américain. 

C’est a Londres que j’ai décidé de changer de voie et de reprendre des études cette fois dans l‘Art. J‘ai quitte mon job dans la pub et après un stage d‘été je me suis inscrite dans un “Foundation” course d ‘un an a Heatherley school of Art, puis j ‘ai continué ; HNC (Higher National certificate) et puis Central Saint Martins school of Art pour faire un Master en Fine Arts.

J‘ai eu de belles expériences a Londres: mon atelier à Notting Hill puis avec deux petites filles à élever, J‘ai commencé à organiser des expo d’artistes francais (dont deux Bretons!)  à Londres dans une Pop Up galerie à Portobello.
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Quand je suis arrivée en Californie, je me suis connectée au milieu de l‘art en reprenant des cours et j ‘ai eu la chance de rencontrer des artistes faisant partie d’une communauté à Sausalito et c‘est ainsi que j’ai loué un atelier. C est là ou je travaille depuis 2015!


Quels sont vos futurs projets?


Je travaille souvent par séries traitant d’un thème: cette année j’ai commence une série de tableaux sur mes origines bretonnes et la notion d’identité; je l’ai intitulée “des racines et des ailes”. 

Il s’agit d’une exploration de mon parcours de vie entre tradition et modernité reliant les symboles de mes origines bretonnes et un univers plus urbain et americain. Le choc ou l ‘intégration de cultures est quelque chose qui m‘intéresse beaucoup. Je souhaite que cette série éveille des questions sur la notion d ‘identité et de notre capacité humaine à garder une mémoire forte de nos origines tout en évoluant grace au contact avec d’autres cultures.

Cette série est aussi un hommage mes grands mères qui portaient le coiffe bigoudenne jusqu'à leur mort. Elles n’ont jamais eu la chance de voyager comme moi et d’explorer d’autres cultures. Ces toiles sont un clin d’oeil pour leur dire “je porte en moi votre héritage de femmes fortes, votre identité bretonne tout en me construisant ailleurs. Même sans porter physiquement la coiffe, elle est intégrée symboliquement en moi et dans le patrimoine transmis à mes filles. Je me sens libre et aventureuse tout en étant fière de mes origines bretonnes et de cette lignée de femmes à fort tempérament!
Mon projet est d’exposer cette série de toiles ( J’en ai trois et prévois d’ en créer 10 autres) dans un lieu qui aurait du sens, comme un musée bigouden ou un espace culturel breton.

Mon deuxième projet que j ‘ai commence avant l ‘été est une nouvelle série plus abstraite qui puisse son inspiration en Bretagne avec des références à l’univers marin mais aussi aux souvenirs d’enfance de ma mère couturière. La matière des costumes bretons et des riches broderies colorées me fascinent. Cette série de grandes toiles sera pleine d’énergie et de vitalité bretonne et colorée!


Comment la Bretagne influence-t’elle votre Art?


Consciemment et inconsciemment la Bretagne et sa culture émergent dans mon art: Les paysages bretons et surtout les plages du Finistere ont un profond impact sur ma création: les couleurs d’abord avec ses camaïeux de bleus, de verts et nuances de gris sont dans beaucoup de mes tableaux. J‘aime peindre des toiles inspirées de la mer et de l’atmosphère qui y règne : une mélange de sérénité et de force. 

Mes références visuelles prennent source dans la mémoire du pays: la mer, la lumière des ciels mais aussi les costumes, les matières. C’est une façon pour moi de rester en contact permanent avec ma Bretagne natale et d’exprimer mes émotions et attachement profond à cette terre si riche.

Marine Guegan Strage - Rise
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Exposition in San Francisco on Breton-American History

5/2/2018

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Breizh Amerika Expo
Photo Credit @BretagneTransamerica
To celebrate Fête de la Bretagne in California (Brittany Week), non-profit organization Breizh Amerika will be hosting a series of events from May 18th-27th to celebrate the culture, food, music, film, and history of the region of Brittany, France.

A special exposition with panels, maps, photographs and brochures will be held at the Alliance Française San Francisco to highlight the authentic beauty and uniqueness of Brittany while also focusing on the presence of Bretons in California as early as the 19th century. Three panels retracing the history of Bretons in western United States, normally exhibited by Bretagne Transamerica at the Chateau de Tronjoly in Gourin, Brittany, will be on loan for the SF exposition. The expo will culminate with a lecture on the evening of May 24th on the adventures of three notable Breton-Californians.  

Breizh Amerika : From Brittany to California -- Breton adventures in California
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Exposition from May 14th to June 2nd at Alliance Française San Francisco (1345 Bush St, San Francisco, CA 94109)
Exhibition curator: Marion Le Guellec / Photo Exhibit: Madeleine Adkins / Panels : Bretagne Transamerica
 

Lecture on May 24th, 6:45pm at Alliance Française SF
Gilles Lorand and Claudine Chalmers will share the stories of some Bretons who entered San Francisco and California history. 
 
Gilles Lorand
Breton, founder and tour Guide at “San Francisco by Gilles”
Gilles Lorand will chronicle the story of Joseph-Yves Lemantour (a.k.a “Limantour”), a native from Lorient (Brittany) who owned half of the city of San Francisco and the participation of Breton sailors during the Californian Gold Rush. 
 
Claudine Chalmers, Ph.D.
Historian, author and French Chevalier of the Order of Arts & Letters
Claudine Chalmers will chronicle the lives of two Breton pioneers who left an important mark on California : Ernest Narjot, an artist from Saint-Malo, and Jules Simoneau, a native from Nantes, tavern-keeper who helped Jules Tavernier (painter) found an art colony in the Monterey peninsula, and was best known for his friendship with Robert Louis Stevenson (novelist).
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Fête de la Bretagne 2018 in California

4/26/2018

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Fête de la Bretagne in California
May 18th - 27th in San Francisco, Berkley, San Diego, CA


​Each year during Fête de la Bretagne, hundreds of thousands of Bretons and friends of Brittany come together in France and around the world to celebrate breton identity, culture, music, dance, food, language, and economy.

Since 2015, Breizh Amerika​ has organized breton themed events for American audiences in NYC, Chicago, Detroit, St Louis, Cleveland, Rochester, Santa Fe, Albuquerque, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Arnaudville and Scott, Louisiana to celebrate la Fête de la Bretagne.
 
The Fête de la Bretagne in California will feature performances by the Breizh Amerika Collective, ​an initiative that brings together innovative musicians from Brittany, France and the United States of America to collaboratively work to create and produce original music, bring awareness to endangered tr​aditions, while developing durable Transatlantic links of cooperation and understanding. ​

May 20th, San Francisco - Concert
Blush Wine Bar (476 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114)
6pm, Soirée Jazz Club Wine Bar (Free)

May 22nd, San Francisco - Film night
Breton film night at L'Alliance Française (
1345 Bush St, San Francisco, CA 94109)
7pm
"Belle-Île-en-mer, île bretonne et acadienne" (VOFR) de Phil Comeau
“Copain comme Cajun” de Yann Rivallain

May 23rd, Berkeley - Crêpes Party 
Brittany Crêpes (913 University Ave. Berkeley, CA 94710)
7pm, Crêpes Party & Concert ($5 entry + meal)

May 24th, San Francisco - Conference, Concert, Cocktail 
Fête de la Bretagne at L'Alliance Française (1345 Bush St, San Francisco, CA 94109)
6:45pm - Lecture on Breton History in California
8pm Concert - Breizh Amerika Collective
9:15pm - Reception : crêpes & drinks
($10 entry)

​May 25th, San Francisco - Interceltic Fest
The Plough and The Stars (116 Clement St, San Francisco, CA 94118)
8pm, Interceltic Ceili-Fest Noz ($10 entry)
with Breizh Amerika Collective and Irish band

​May 26th,  San Diego - Concert 
SD French American School auditorium (6550 Soledad Mountain Rd, La Jolla, CA 92037
3pm, Concert - Breizh Amerika Collective

May 26th, San Diego - Concert
The Stout Public House (1125 Sixth Ave., San Diego, CA)
7:30pm, Concert - Breizh Amerika Collective

 
 
For more infomation visit : www.breizh-amerika.com
​
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Celtic, Swing, and Jazz: Brittany’s Strongest Trad Players Team up with California Jazz Artist for Collaborative Breizh Amerika Tour of California

4/16/2018

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Thomas Moisson Breizh Amerika
Thomas Moisson

Brittany, France’s farthermost western province with its Celtic roots and language and strong regional culture, prides itself on its unique identity. Yet non-profit organization Breizh Amerika—part international business accelerator, part cultural collaboration instigator--is devoted to highlighting the strong similarities between Brittany and the many cultures and scenes in the US.


The half-decade old program has paired up Breton folk musicians with Garifuna drum ensembles, a dialog between minority communities fighting to keep their languages and powerful musical heritage alive. It took Breton artists to once (and in some cases still) Francophone and Breton-influenced areas of the US, from St. Louis to New Orleans. It has toured these unexpected musical conversations on the East Coast and through the Midwest for Fête de la Bretagne..


Now the initiative returns with a musical exploration of how traditional Breton tunes can speak to and through jazz. Thanks to a close musical friendship between accordion whiz kid Thomas Moisson and SF jazz mainstay, bassist Joe Kyle, the Breizh party is coming to the West Coast with several performances and educational residencies in San Diego and San Francisco this May. Joining them on keys will be Breton composer and performer Julien Le Mentec, who has played around the world at festivals and backed up tradition-inspired performers like Goran Bregovic and Carlos Nunez, as well as champion bombarde player Gweltaz Rialland who has translated his stunning traditional reed chops to alto sax.


“When you put Breton artists together with artists from all different American backgrounds, to have them play and perform together, you are more or less demonstrating how people are similar,” reflects Breizh Amerika founder and driving force Charles Kergaravat, born in New York to Breton parents. “American audiences love it because we look for the commonality between people. The current global climate of division and mistrust has made us want to spotlight our similarities.”


Building relationships where none existed before and crafting new repertoire from long-standing sets of tunes and songs is not for the faint at heart. “You have to be a little mad, a little crazy,” chuckles Kergaravat. “We’re not just performing music from Brittany, which in itself is very, very rare in the US, but we’re also getting Americans involved who may have never heard Breton music before. They connect it to what they know and hear new things, and then they become great ambassadors for the music. I like the openness and the structure of our projects obliges Breton musicians to engage with it. It breaks them out of their scene, their comfort zone.”


The newly formed ensemble will perform traditional concerts, but also engage young listeners and learners at school programs. The tour coincides with an exhibit dedicated to the Bretons who shaped California, as part of the early history of the Bay Area—a Breton rancher once owned wide swaths of what’s now San Francisco—and the Gold Rush. After their American performances, the project will head to Brittany to play the Festival Interceltique de Lorient, one of Europe’s biggest music festivals, with an audience that often reaches 800,000.

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Though few Americans have had a chance to experience Breton music, Kergaravat and his collaborators have noticed a pattern: US audiences tend to be truly enthused and effusively share this enthusiasm with visiting musicians, an attitude starkly different from the more staid receptions back home. “Americans are often genuinely curious and excited, and they don’t hesitate to share that with the musicians,” says Kergaravat. “It has made the Breton artists see their own work in a new light.”


Upcoming shows : https://www.breizh-amerika.com/the-collective.html

​
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Breizh Amerika networking drink in San Francisco

2/18/2018

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​Join us for our next networking event in
​San Francisco on February 28th!


Are you breton or a friend of Brittany, France living in the Bay area?

Join us at The Plough and The Stars to meet and learn more about upcoming "Fête de la Bretagne" events in May. The meeting will be followed by a networking drink. 


Wednesday, February 28th
The Plough and The Stars

(116 Clement Street, San Francisco, California)
7:30 pm : Meeting & Discussion  
8:30 pm : Networking 

Questions?
​info@breizh-amerika.com
​
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Crêpes Party in San Francisco with Breizh Amerika

1/5/2018

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Breizh Amerika a non-profit organization that builds bridges of cooperation between the USA and Brittany, France is organizing a "Crêpes Party" in San Francisco on January 14th. Bretons and friends of Brittany are all welcome to enjoy one of the region of Brittany's greatest exports at Brittany Crêpes restaurant (913 University Ave, Berkeley, California 94710) at 5:30pm.

The Crêpe bretonne is a traditional dish in Brittany. Having become well-known throughout the world served with salted butter or combinations of fillings that you pick on your own. According to legend, the Breton "crêpe" originated with the clumsiness of a farmer's wife, who spilled some buckwheat porridge onto a very hot, flat stone lying in the fireplace.
From the 12th century onwards, traces of buckwheat pollen has been found in peatlands across Brittany. There is a label of protected origin for buckwheat flour from Brittany; the association "Blé noir tradition Bretagne" brings together over 800 producers, as well as some 10 millers, to promote the use of Breton flour (some 4,000 tons per year).

In the mid-20th century, owing to the emigration of many Bretons, Breton crêperies started opening in France, especially in Paris, in the Montparnasse district– but also in many countries around the world.

We look forward to meeting for a evening of good conversion and delicious breton food.

Space will be limited so please reserve your place today.
​

    RSVP for Crêpes Party SF dinner
    ​on Jan 14th at 5:30pm
    ​

Submit
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Soirée de Noël de Breizh Amerika San Francisco

12/7/2017

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Les Bretons sont partout, y compris à San Francisco. Mais jusqu’à présent, ils n’avaient pas d’association pour se regrouper. C’est désormais chose faîte. Breizh Amerika San Francisco organise son premier dîner le mercredi 13 décembre au bistro Garçon, dans le quartier de Mission à San Francisco.
 
Bretons et amis et le Bretagne sont conviés.
Pendant le repas, les fondateurs présenteront les futures activités de l’association et les temps forts à venir, comme la fête de la Bretagne du samedi 19 mai au dimanche 27 mai 2018. Outre sa mission de promotion culturelle, Breizh Amerika veut également favoriser les échanges économiques entre San Francisco et la Bretagne.
 
Mercredi 13 décembre 2017
 
Soirée de Noël de Breizh Amerika San Francisco
Sur réservations (nombre de places limité)

 
Heure : 07:30 PM
Lieu : Bistro Garçon
Adresse : 1101 Valencia St, San Francisco


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    Breizh Amerika 

    is an organization established to create, facilitate, promote, and sponsor wide-ranging innovative and collaborative cultural and economic projects that strengthen and foster relations and cooperation between the United States of America and the region of Brittany, France.

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