AlgaNet

Born in a French Atlantic town, living for a long time on Mediterranean Spanish coast, I have always been involved with the marine nature. My two hobbies are seashells, http://www.alboranshells.com and seaweeds, http://www.alga-net.com.

For 30 years I have been collecting, preserving and pressing seaweeds, based on traditional methods of botany but also improving my own technique to press and avoid fading with around 150 different species of algae, tiny ones and giant kelps.
To create my seaweed collages, I first collect seaweeds at the shore on beaches, specially in spring and autumn after storms. It is fun even if sometimes you don't find any.
Then the process of cleaning, pressing the seaweeds is an arduous and somehow boring work but the results can make you very happy.
To create my compositions, I need motivation and inspiration and I do not fix the seaweeds until I have a special “feeling” telling me that combination of forms and colors corresponds to the definitive collage.
Fixing the whole artwork is very delicate and meticulous. I use glue and brushes.

Green, brown and red seaweeds offer a marine festival of natural forms and colors and turning seaweeds into art is my daily challenge. Results can be seen through my exclusive works: scientific pressings, vintage compositions, herbarium, bookmarks and multi-panel collages. Every design is different and constitutes an original model even if the same species of seaweed are used.
I have done numerous exhibitions, attended craft fairs in France and Spain and prepared wall displays for schools or museums.

Some years ago I have inherit some very old books, magazines and ephemera, therefore I have created a new section of nautical, sea life prints in my shop. Inspired by nature and illustrations, overprinted on different backgrounds like old map, dictionary page reproductions, digital aged or tea stained paper,

I am always opened to receive custom order.