Passé Falaise Futur PIM: Collectively Creating Visual Artworks Inspired by Cliff Dynamics

From 5 to 9 January 2026, the PIM Passé Falaise Futur invited students to explore cliffs as entities in constant transformation, at the crossroads of timescales, landscape dynamics and coastal ecological challenges. The aim was to use the cliff as both a subject of scientific reflection and a medium for artistic creation, opening up a sensitive and poetic approach to natural phenomena.

Supervised by geomorphologist Pauline Letortu and visual artist Gabrielle Herveet, the programme alternated between fieldwork on the cliffs of Porsmilin, analysis of coastal dynamics and collective artistic production. Students worked on large-scale flexible supports made from reclaimed materials, following all stages of a creative project: observation, experimentation, material testing, production and exhibition design.

Among the artworks produced, the installation “Les Sources”, created using graphite and oil pastel on tracing paper strips, offered an immersion into the “inner depths” of the cliff. Roots and water flows represented the circulation of matter, while colour gradients illustrated sediment and nutrient concentrations. Each panel depicted a root system typical of cliff tops, highlighting the diversity of root architectures and their role in erosion processes through the circulation of water and sap.

This interdisciplinary and collective work connected scientific rigour with artistic experimentation, while raising awareness of the systemic challenges linked to the transformation of coastal landscapes. Students developed their creativity, their ability to adapt within interdisciplinary collaboration, and their capacity to communicate complex phenomena to a wider audience.

The creations had been exhibited in Brest at Salle des Abords as part of the RESSAC Festival from 10 March to 3 April 2026, within the exhibition “Fils, Flots, Fluages” by artist Gabrielle Herveet.

The artworks:

Discover the students’ interview during the PIM Forum:

Discover the presentation of the artworks:

Supervisors:

• Pauline Letortu, LETG/UBO
• Gabrielle Herveet, artiste plasticienne