”Così è (se vi pare)” is a 200 x 200 cm, partially unwoven, nude, linen canvas. Following previous works with nude canvas mounted on traditional frames, ”Così è...” takes canvas off the wall, back to movement, in the form of a long skirt with a train that symbolizes heritage as much as its transformation. It is mounted on a linen lined mannequin + metallic stand.
The piece is very much influenced by the testimonies and documents I consulted in my previous project –”Le Maschere Nude”, that led me to investigate colonial prostitution in the North of Africa. Thus, ”Così è (se vi pare)” evokes the subjugation of bodies, whether it is territorial, economic, memorial or sexual. It does so with linen canvas, which smell and touch immerse us in our Mediterranean heritage.
Questioning the gap between social representations and the inner truth of a person, the canvas’ folds become a maze which, dives into women’s intimate memories, and into the conquest of sexuality.
Only with a mirror you can read Simona Polvani’s poem (embroidered on the perimeter of the canvas):
“non la resa, ma l’abbandono, il piede dice, puntato /
è compasso, a tracciare
lo sconfinato perimetro
dell’essere,
tu in me, dell’accadere, io, in te”
In May 2019, during the ArtBanchel 3 Festival (Madrid), I asked women artists to wear the piece. Their portraits were subsequently printed on a human scale and integrated into the urban landscape of the artistic district of Carabanchel-Madrid.
https://ludivineallegue.com/cosi-e-se-vi-pare/

BIOGRAPHY
Allegue started painting at her city’s Art School (EMA, now an official preparatory class for French National Arts Academies) with painters H. Picardi and C. Aresti.
She graduated in Arts and Sciences of Art and completed her PhD at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. She dedicated part of her PhD thesis to Jaume Plensa’s sculptures, and subsequently worked at Plensa’s Studio during a few years.
She was an artist in residence at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Art Limoges Aubusson in France (French Ministère de la Culture) in 2007 and at the Museum CAV La Neomudéjar in Madrid-Spain from Nov 2015 to April 2016.
She was one the recommended artists of the Premio Combat in 2020, and has received a Talent Grant from the ECAM, one of the top International Film Schools according to the Hollywood Reporter in 2020.
Her work has been seen at international venues such as Musée National des Arts et Métiers (Paris, France), Museum CAV La Neomudéjar (Madrid, Spain), Arnolfini (Bristol, UK), Arches (Glasgow, UK), Talmart Gallery (Paris, France), Nitra National Gallery (Slovakia), Avignon/New York Film Festival (New York)…
Also a member of AVAM (Artistas Visuales Asociados de Madrid, #964) and VEGAP, since 2019, she is co-managing Le B^timent [@le.batiment.studio], the studio she co-founded with artists Dana Balajovsky, Juan Borgognioni, Alexandra Moldovan and Estefanía Santiago in Madrid.
https://ludivineallegue.com