CECILE CORNET

Sylvia Federici writes : ‘They say it is love, we say it is labour.’

I asked the women of my life to lend me an object that resonated to them with this quote.

- Cécile Cornet

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Cécile Cornet, Pandore, 2025

Courtesy: Danysz Gallery

First holding a Master's degree in Gender History and later graduating from the Art & Image department at the Kourtrajmé school, Cécile Cornet’s personal journey has positioned her standing among a new generation of purpose-driven artists. Her artistic practice, at the crossroads of sociology and visual art, is the result of a long and thoughtful process in which research and observation nourish one another.

A self-proclaimed feminist, Cornet’s references and readings seem endless, ranging from Italian sociologist Silvia Federici to the Greek myth of Dibutades, including contemporary thinkers such as Titiou Lecoq. Her political stance is both the origin and the subject of her work. Her artistic creation questions the autonomous distribution of domestic tasks, gender hierarchies, norms of love and devotion, and dissects mechanisms of invisibilization. Her representations of the home — at times a space of intimate refuge, at others a theater of inequality — highlight the tensions between the personal and the political. Guided by this leitmotif, Cornet’s work fully embraces the spirit of the times and invites the viewer to engage in critical self-reflection.
“Would you have come closer to my paintings if the colors were as dark as the subject? ”

- Cécile Cornet
Cécile Cornet, Rely on you ?, 2025

Cécile Cornet’s compositions borrows visual codes from advertising: bright, saturated colors embrace nude bodies, tablecloths, and everyday objects, achieving a striking visual balance. The contrast between her pop aesthetic and her committed message gives her work its full subversive power.

The scenes she paints reflect personal questions which, through their universality, become part of a broader collective discourse. Her paintings, mostly done in acrylic, captivate through their vivid hues and meticulous compositions. Each element is carefully considered, with everyday objects — such as canned goods, oilcloth tablecloths, or scarves — transformed into symbols rich with memory and meaning. This attention to detail gives her works both a personal and universal dimension.
The depth of her approach is further underscored by the support of some of her works: linen canvases sourced from her grandmother’s wedding trousseau. Born a “daughter of” and later a “wife of,” without ever having the opportunity to break free from these defining prepositions, this family legacy becomes a symbol of emancipation in her art.
- Cecile Cornet
  Romance, 2025
  Acrylic on canvas and embroidery
  18 x 13 cm
  7 x 5 inches
  
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- Cecile Cornet
  Eggs II, 2025
  Acrylic on canvas
  18 x 13 cm
  7 x 5 inches
  
  View more details
In short, Cécile Cornet’s aesthetic is a fusion of vibrant color, everyday symbolism, and political commitment, offering a powerful reflection on the female condition and contemporary social structures.
IN THE PRESS

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L'empowerment artistique de Cécile Cornet, Beware
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Cecile Cornet, Ex Voto, 2025
Courtesy: Ismael Bazri

About the artist

Cécile Cornet is originally from the south of France. After studying gender history, she began painting as a self-taught artist before enrolling in 2020 at the Kourtrajmé school and joining the Artagon artist residency in 2022. Her work has been exhibited at the Salon de Montrouge, the MAMCO (Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Geneva), Château de Servières, Luxembourg Art Week, Château La Coste, Galerie Continua, and Le Centquatre. She now lives in Marseille.
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Cecile Cornet, Noeuds de pendues II, 2025