Petit éloge des brumes
by
YOUME
February 2026 - March 2026
Opening on Thursday, February 26th, in the presence of the artist. Calligraphic performance
We are in reality made of the same malleable material as clouds and mists.
Corinne Atlan
Mist is not a veil that hides, it is a pedagogy of seeing. It asks us to relinquish immediate clarity in order to welcome a presence that is slower, truer. In Petit éloge des brumes, YouMe turns this intangible matter into a principle of writing, not to depict, but to let things emerge. The mark does not assert, it suggests, it does not confine meaning, it gives it air.
The exhibition is conceived as a tribute to the book by Corinne Atlan, who generously allowed her title to become the title of this passage. Like mist withdrawing without a sound, the works offer an experience of gradual unveiling, they allow us to glimpse what usually remains behind words. Here, calligraphy becomes a threshold, the place where the invisible is not proven, but sensed.
With YouMe, gesture stays as close as possible to silence. A very fine tension unfolds, between impulse and restraint, between the density of ink and the breath of paper. This aesthetic of the in-between turns each piece into an invitation to inhabit uncertainty with gentleness, as if beauty, rather than giving itself, consented to be approached.
Biography
Originally from Kumamoto Prefecture, YouMe is a Japanese calligrapher whose practice bridges traditional calligraphy and a contemporary approach, conceived as an art form in its own right. After enduring many hardships, she restored calligraphy, practised since childhood, to an essential place in her life, recognising it as her ikigai, her reason for being. Her works carry a steadfast desire, to invite each person to reconnect with their authentic self, and to rediscover what, in life, truly matters.
Since resuming her artistic career in 2021, her path has gained remarkable momentum, notably through her selection to exhibit at the Salon d’Automne and at Le Salon. Her universe, threaded with pain and hope, moves with delicacy and seeks less to persuade than to awaken.
Some works draw inspiration from her husband’s scientific research, offering a singular reading of the same phenomenon, observed both by an artist and by a researcher. The encounter of seemingly opposing elements, and their possible reconciliation, forms one of the recurring motifs in her practice.