Bras dessus, bras dessous - Jeu d’échecs aux Oblates

For over a decade, these two artists have developed a body of work at the crossroads of sculpture and performance, inspired by popular narratives, everyday gestures, and social dynamics. Their quasi-anthropological approach explores forms of transmission within communities. With this project, they reinterpret the thousand-year-old history of chess – a game whose rules, forms, and symbols have evolved over eras and cultures – to create a new version that is more inclusive and organic.

Here, the chessboard becomes a sensorial map of the territory in which it is located, inspired by biodiversity atlases, where shapes, colours, and lines depict ecosystems in perpetual motion. While maintaining their modes of movement, the pieces abandon all hierarchy: they interlock, accumulate, interact, and embody the richness of living beings, as opposed to a logic of conflict.

The physical dimension of the game calls for interaction: some pieces require broad gestures or coordination between multiple participants, encouraging cooperation just as much as observation. The project involves the participant’s body, imagination, and the collective. A game, a sculpture, and a living map, all at the same time, this work offers a new way of occupying space and reinventing rules.

After its stint in the park, this living artwork will be find a permanent home in the courtyard of Château des Ducs de Bretagne.