ELKE FOLTZ

"Coeur Madd " June 2025, ink, oil, collage on cotton canvas 160 × 120 x 2 cm.
2025 - Solo Show - Circle Culture Gallery - “Balance in Chaos”, curated by Johann Alexis von Haehling.

"Coeur Madd" is a series of 3 works retracing the memory and invisible thread between two different generations and cultural backgrounds. The notion of belonging is highlighted by a search for connection, before becoming, with the series Coeur Madd, a celebration of memories that were never fully experienced: brief, rare recollections of my late Senegalese grandmother who lived far away, and the grieving of a version of myself that could never be.

I painted "Coeur Madd" thinking of my grandmother. Mame—my mum’s mother. I didn’t have the opportunity to see her often when she was alive. While painting these beautiful yellows, I couldn’t stop thinking about her.
I remembered the time she found out that my favorite fruit was the Madd. Its heart-shaped shell is filled with seeds coated in a sweet, juicy pulp that delights the taste buds with its tangy flavor. The fruit's color is bright, a slightly ochre orange-yellow, like sunlight.
My grandmother sent me packets full of Madd for many years, all the way from Senegal to France. I can still hear my mum telling me, “Your Mame has sent you some Madd—just for you!”
 I’m smiling.

Text written during the creative process.

"The Bark of the Tree", sept 2025, ink, oil, collage on cotton canvas 160 × 120 x 2 cm.

Work in progress - Collage – Studio 2025
Throughout the artistic process, fragments of canvas are reintegrated into the painting through collage. These cutouts become witnesses to the creation and offer an opportunity for renewal and balance.