A PEACEFUL & CLIMATE-FRIENDLY STRUGGLE.
Née à Québec en 1986, Laurence Vallières a toujours eu un intérêt marqué pour les arts, une passion transmise par sa famille. Après des études collégiales en arts plastiques, elle poursuit sa formation académique à l'Université Concordia, où elle obtient un baccalauréat en céramique.À la fin de ses études, inspirée par l'art de la rue, Laurence commence à travailler le carton recyclé. Avec ce matériau abordable et disponible partout, Laurence a rapidement commencé à créer des œuvres de grande envergure, non seulement chez elle à Montréal, mais aussi à travers le monde. De l'Amérique à l'Asie, en passant par l'Europe, cette artiste québécoise ne cesse d'impressionner partout où elle passe.Lutter pour un monde meilleur, une sculpture à la fois.
What are your core values?
Kindness, curiosity, and the desire to build a slightly gentler world. I try to end each interaction on a positive note. I deeply believe that art, like life, should always tend towards the attention to others, even in their smallest gestures.
What does your dream project look like?
My dream project? A world where my sculptures infiltrate urban architecture, like the gargoyles of yesteryear, but version 2025. Imagine life-sized cardboard animals, lying casually on the windowsills of a condo tower, or a philosopher monkey watching the customers of a restaurant from the top of the roof. Not to monitor, just to dream a little. It would not be 'useful' in the classical sense, but perhaps the wonderful has become a form of utility in itself.
Describe your work in one sentence.
A monumental bestiary made from what our society rejects as if the waste were reincarnating into mythical animals.
Why would you like to be known?
To be honest, it’s not so much the notoriety as the feeling of having an impact. Being an artist is often about talking alone with your ideas. So when the outside responds whether it’s with recognition or a conversation around my work it’s like hearing a reassuring echo: you’re not alone in the forest.
What impact does your artistic practice have?
I sometimes receive photos of students and teachers who create their own cardboard sculptures, inspired by my work. The works are all very different from mine. They all have the touch of their creators and are successful or not, they are all full of heart. And that, for me, is the essential thing: making people want to transform their waste into beauty. It’s a gentle way of reminding that what you throw away doesn’t disappear—it just changes your address. So might as well offer it a second life on a wall, rather than in a sea.