Bernard Aubert, Jardin de sculptures ressuscité / Resurrected sculpture garden

this image and the next one (June 2024) published here in
agreement with the editors of the website Tipeek Photos

In Durtal, a community with about 3300 inhabitants (January 2021) in the west of France in the Maine-et-Loire department, there is a sculpture garden that some ten years ago has disappeared for several years.

Here's the story.

Life and works

The sculpture garden was created by Bernard Aubert, who was born in the mid 1920s and passed away on April 30, 2013, aged 88 years. 

The internet has virtually no biographical information about him, also not regarding the year he started decorating the garden near the house just outside the built-up area of ​​Durtal, along the departmental road D18. 

As to the moment of inception, the photos of Francis David, added below, are important, because these photos were taken in 1990 and it can be seen that in that year the site was already somewhat developed, which could mean that Aubert started construction in the 1980s.

However, since the art environment in 1990 did not yet have the allure that we see in the photos from 2024 and it is known that Aubert was admitted to a retirement home in 2010, it can be assumed that most of the design took place in the 1990s and in the early years of the 21st century.

this image and the next three show scenes of the garden in 1990 
on photos courtesy of Francis David, currently 
in the collection of the Lille Art Museum

Aubert, who had a son and a daughter, lived alone in the house from an unknown moment and because his health was declining he was admitted to a home for the elderly in 2010. He would die there in 2013.

After his departure to the retirement home, his daughter would have liked to live in her father's house, but the she would have had to buy out her brother, who was entitled to half of the inheritance upon Aubert's death, but such a deal was beyond her reach at that time.

So the house was put up for sale in 2012, but before this took place, the daughter had removed all the creations from the garden and stored them safely.

The house was bought by a young couple, who broke up after a few years and left the house, that was put up for sale again 

Aubert's daughter and her husband seized their opportunity, bought the house and redesigned the garden with all the stored creations. 

Bernard Aubert's art environment is looking beautiful these days, which can especially be seen in the images posted in June 2024 on the recently published new French website Tipeek Photos.

Documentation

* Entry on the website Habitants-Paysagistes of the Lille Art Museum

* Article (June 2023) on the website Tipeek Photos

* Article in Brno Montpied, Le gazouillis des éléphants, Paris (Ed du Sandre), 2017

Bernard Aubert

Sculpture garden

Route de la Promenade 277 (D18) 

Lieu-dit La Promenade

49430 Durtal,  dept Maine-et-Loire, region Pays de la Loire, France

can be seen from the road

Google Streetview