Chantal Pollier is a visual artist who prefers to work with stone (and in wax, glass, drawings, and photography). All her work holds references to temporality and transience. Many are rooted in science, with a particular interest in geology, biology, anatomy and morphology. The way in which collaborating artists and scientists can enter each other’s territory, and the extent to which they can thereby add new dimensions to both their own work and that of their partners, leads to refreshing perspectives.

The skin forms a protective barrier between a being and everything that exists outside that being. A vulnerable border, which through recognition simultaneously invokes empathy and the urge to cross an invisible border.

Time and again, she is captivated by the interesting tension between the futile facts of her memories and the magnificence of nature. She tries to rewrite her personal interpretations in a formal language where memories and markings appear on the surface – the skin – of her work.

Time is a strange thing. In nature time becomes almost meaningless, considering the history of the earth our time becomes minute. And in this minute time we must act, in kindness and beauty…

Battle. (photo credits @ Valentina Lari)
2018 Covelano Gold Marble – public artwork in Poperinge (B)
H: 70cm L:110cm W:60cm

Battle (inside). (photo credits @ Valentina Lari)
2018 Covelano Gold Marble – public artwork in Poperinge (B)
H: 70cm L:110cm W:60cm

Battle (detail). (photo credits @ Valentina Lari)
2018 Covelano Gold Marble – public artwork in Poperinge (B)
H: 70cm L:110cm W:60cm

A woman bends protectively, her back arched in a powerful movement. The image in white Covelano marble captures this moment—a frozen snapshot of strength. What is she protecting? We all have our suspicions. Every day, we fight not just against fate, but against our own judgment. In Battle of the Remains, I aim to show the strength with which we cling to life. A lonely yet beautiful, battle. Decline is inevitable.

Seed, 2023. Black Belgian Marble de Mazy, wax, polyester, oil paint
H: 30cm L:95cm W:50cm

Seed (detail), 2023. Black Belgian Marble de Mazy, wax, polyester, oil paint
H: 30cm L:95cm W:50cm

Artists often use nature as mirrors of a changing world, depicting heavy, dramatic scenes affected by “the cancer of time”—the mutilated landscape. I, however, aim to show nature’s resilience: it endures, folds, sighs, groans, and then continues, adapted and transformed. My parallel world exists without humans, yet their presence lingers in the traces they’ve left behind.

A conversation., 2017. Black Belgian Marble de Mazy
H: 20cm L:15cm W: 7cm

A conversation. (female), 2017. Black Belgian Marble de Mazy
H: 20cm L:15cm W: 7cm

A conversation (male), 2017. Black Belgian Marble de Mazy
H: 20cm L:15cm W: 7cm

I explore the transition between the stone’s surface and the surfaces I create. This interplay fascinates me, sparking a tension worth investigating. To reveal something new, I must treat the stone aggressively. Once sanded, polished and oiled, it becomes very dark. I work with scratches and lines, using impregnating oil to create my own approach. It’s a process of adding and removing, leading to a parallel universe where the work becomes a body.

Please touch me. (photo credits @Annemarie Casteleyn), 2020. Polyester, wax, oil paint, human hair
Life size

Kairos. (photo credits @Valentina Lari), 2024. Belgian Greystone – remains of a Christian Altar
L:3m H:85 W:1m

Kairos. (photo credits @Valentina Lari), 2024. Belgian Greystone – remains of a Christian Altar
L:3m H:85 W:1m

Kairos, the youngest and most rebellious grandson of Chronos, is the son of Zeus and the bringer of change, insight, and transformation. Known as the “God of the Right Moment,” he symbolizes seizing opportunities that emerge unexpectedly in a specific context. Kairos represents the inner experience of time—those passionate moments of beauty, insight, and decisiveness that make life meaningful. To recognize them requires attention, focus, and calm. These are the “empty” moments we too often fill, the “delayed time” that fits around us like a loose coat.

Stitches. (photo credits @ Rachel Laget), 2024. Black Belgian marble and Carrara marble, oil paint
H:28cm W:7cm D:3cm

Foldings of time, 2021. Carrara marble and gold leaf
H:21cm W:28cm D:3cm

Foldings of time, 2021. Carrara marble and gold leaf
H:21cm W:28cm D:3cm

Foldings of time, 2021. Carrara marble and gold leaf
H:21cm W:28cm D:3cm (each)

Foldings of time, 2021. Carrara marble and gold leaf
H:21cm W:28cm D:3cm (each)

In my hometown, there is a masterpiece by the brothers Van Eyck: the lamb of God. Research suggests that Van Eyck may have used his masterful grisaille technique to engage in a dialogue with contemporary sculptors. In the Middle Ages, color held deep significance, so it’s striking that a new art form emerged later, where artists painted exclusively in shades of gray.  More research involved my sculptural relationship with fabric and its folds, an often-overlooked theme in art. I wondered if I could convey something through the detailed folds of the headdress worn by Saint John in the outer panel of the Ghent Altarpiece. A third work was inspired by Hieronymus Bosch’s Saint Christopher, particularly the strange ball of fabric on Saint Christopher’s back.The result of these investigations is a triptych titled The Folds of Time.

Nursing corps. Ongoing from 2011-2023. Polyester, wax, oil paint
Life sizes

Nursing corps. Ongoing from 2011-2023. Polyester, wax, oil paint
Life sizes

‘Nursing corps’ reflects on the position of women in a war situation. The Nursing corps was a female department of the American army during the First World War, a corps of nurses and stretcher bearers. The work shows women during World War I, but also women in a traumatic situation now, where they try hard to protect their loved ones against fate.

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www.chantal-pollier.com

All images copyright and courtesy of Chantal Pollier

Portrait of Chantal Pollier in studio (photo credits @ Rachel laget)

Art, Creativity, Installation, Nature, Science, Sculpture