Monthoux began this year’s project with modest ambitions six weeks ago, but the drought allowed him to build an entire city of spires. Now he has mixed feelings: he wants it to rain, but he is saddened by the thought that his dream world disappears when it rains. Visitors view the work called “Castle Monthoux” by art artist Francois Monthoux, which he made from clay recovered from the dried-up bed of the Le Toleure river due to the ongoing drought, in Saubraz, Switzerland, August 12, 2022. (REUTERS/ Denis Balibuse) “I imagine the life of people walking under the arches, under the bridge, looking at the monuments, looking at the city,” said Monthoux, who works with clay from the dried-up bed of the Toleure river in the canton of Vaud in western Switzerland. . “So I go into a bubble and become a dreamer… I see their world being created under my fingers,” he added. Land art artist Francois Monthoux works on the “Castle of Monthoux” made from clay recovered from the dried-up bed of the Le Toleure river due to the ongoing drought, in Saubraz, Switzerland, August 12, 2022. (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse) Monthoux, a nature lover, says he is saddened to see plants dying around him and “it would be a disaster” if a sustained drought meant he could continue the project for years. At the same time, he knew from the beginning that it was temporary. “Of course, I’m a little sad, because I’m sad that the form I gave to the subject will disappear,” he said.
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Visitors to the sculpture enjoy it while it lasts. “I don’t have words to say what I feel, because it’s … it’s just wonderful,” said Vaud resident Heidi Butty. Land art artist Francois Monthoux works on the “Castle of Monthoux” made from clay recovered from the dried-up bed of the Le Toleure river due to the ongoing drought, in Saubraz, Switzerland, August 12, 2022. (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse) (Reporting by Denis Balibuse and Cecile Mantovani; Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by Alison Williams)
