I arrived at L’H du Siega on Saturday the 15th of September 2007, by car. It seemed easier at the time, I was packing and bringing most of my belongings and preparing for three month being away from home. It was very easy to get here, a drive from Brighton to Dover, then a nice easy ride on the ferry to Dunkerque, and then 1 – 2 drive to Valenciennes. Everything was fine until we (me and my partner) got back into the car and started to drive on the opposite side of the road. Got very nervous but in fact the drive was very easy, until we got to Valenciennes, where we got lost and couldn’t find the Gallery and this is when the panic button hit in.
After some time we managed to find the Gallery and we met with the Director and president of the Association, Philippe Bétrancourt and the cultural mediator Adeline Michel. Adeline is my saver really, is the only person that I can have a conversation with, with out having to look at my dictionary every second.
After all the formalities and inductions I got settled into a beautiful small house. On the ground floor there is the living area with small kitchen, bathroom and sleeping/living space and upstairs very nice bright studio space, plus I’ve been allocated another large situated the Gallery. All this can be seen on the website: www.hdusiege.org – residences – Présentation.
L’H du Siege is founded by Acte de Naissance in 1996 and is housed in a former joinery in Valenciennes. The space comprises a gallery, artist’s workshops and a livework studio for artists in residency. They are dedicated to the development and promotion of contemporary art and the support of artist through a programme of exhibitions and residencies.
