And suddenly red in the middle of the vines… Visual artist Nathalie Rodach gave a new color to the Château Palmer estate, near Bordeaux, during an artistic installation last winter. We follow her to these legendary lands of Margaux.
Ephemeral sap
© Nathalie Rodach – Nathalie Rodach, Sèves Brutes, future, 2018, close-up view of the performance at Château Palmer.
Last February, the Château Palmer estate became the life-size playground of artist Nathalie Rodach. Inspired by the notion of raw sap, designating the great ascending current that circulates in the conductive vessels of plants, the visual artist deployed a kilometer of red pigment in the vineyard, tracing veins that converge towards the estate’s winery.
Capturing the Elusive
© Nathalie Rodach – Nathalie Rodach, Sèves Brutes, future, 2018, detail of the pigment in the vines at Château Palmer.
The artistic performance was filmed at three different scales: with a drone for an overview, a hand-held camera for a view at human height, and in macroscopic views. Showing that the closer you get, the less perceptible the traces are, the artist seeks to express “the elusive future”. These videos were then presented at the Bordeaux gallery Arrêt sur l’Image, accompanied by a large installation of 180 red chalk drawings.
200 years of history
© Nathalie Rodach – Nathalie Rodach, Sèves Brutes, future, 2018, close-up view of the performance at Château Palmer.
When Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Palmer bought the wine estate in 1814, it was already renowned for the very high quality of its wines, tasted at the court of Versailles. He then worked for nearly 30 years to increase the aura of this place which would henceforth bear his name. The Pereire brothers, the new owners, would build a neo-Renaissance château there in 1856.
© Nathalie Rodach – Nathalie Rodach, Sèves Brutes, future, 2018, preparatory simulation of the performance at Château Palmer.
Another change of hands after the crisis of the 1930s: four dynasties participated in the international recognition of its wine. Their descendants will entrust the management of Château Palmer to Thomas Duroux with the mission of “continuing to develop the estate in a more responsible spirit, attentive to the world around it”.
© Nathalie Rodach – Nathalie Rodach, Sèves Brutes, future, 2018, aerial view of the performance at Château Palmer.
Standing on the left bank of the Bordeaux vineyards, very close to the Gironde estuary, Château Palmer benefits from an exceptional terroir and a rather unusual grape variety in Médoc. Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon coexist in equal proportions, each covering 47% of the estate. Added to this is a touch of Petit Verdot for a unique combination.
Excellence always
© Nathalie Rodach – Nathalie Rodach, Sèves Brutes, future, 2018, aerial view of the performance at Château Palmer.
Third Grand Cru Classé according to the official classification of Bordeaux wines of 1855, Château Palmer is recognized as one of the icons of the Margaux appellation, with vintages that have become legendary. Far from being satisfied with this reputation, the wine estate continues this quest for excellence: it is one of the pioneers by initiating biodynamics in 2008. Six years later, the entire estate was converted to biodynamics.
