Her professional life had been spent supporting artists, up until the day when Sarah Walbaum herself dived into the joy of creation having discovered glass used for stained-glass windows, which she respectfully transformed from its original function.
Her works are created using fragments of glass fallen from work benches during the cutting process. Little misshapen shards which would not end up set in a stained-glass window between two lines of lead but simply discarded. Sarah Walbaum saw much more in them than simple floor sweepings: in her eyes, they were chips of beauty which needed to be saved and reintroduced into the circuit of creation, allowing their true worth to be recognized.
So she collected them, reshaped them, sorted them by colour, packed them together, progressing through trial and error. Thanks to her compositional intelligence and her skilful hands, the discarded scraps slowly became small crystal bushes pinned on brooches or tridactyl bird feet mounted in earrings. These unique pieces, translucent and unicoloured, attract and play with the light of day and night. The collection “Éclats” (Shards) was born.
Material, colour, light
This was the beginning of the parallel storyline written within the walls of the Simon-Marq stained-glass workshop in Reims. Sarah Walbaum started out as a communications consultant at this centuries-old establishment which Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger and Philippe Varin, staunch defenders of local heritage, managed to save at the last moment before it disappeared, and resettled it in an abandoned church. Her initial job was to promote the expertise and creations of the workshop, highlighting both its restoration work and its design work. As of this year, she has taken on the role of director, helping the workshop to transition towards a more entrepreneurial operating method which should secure its future.
Daily contact with the craftsmen and their very delicate materials lit a flame in her. “I fell in love with glass sheets.” Mouth-blown sheets which are stored in a dedicated space where large storage containers are lined up organised by colours. “It’s an incredible treasure. There are 1,100 referenced colours. This was a revelation for me – I have always been enthralled by the power of colour. Matter, colour, light: in glass there is everything.”
A long process
Having worked on intricate details with her jewellery, Sarah turned back to her empirical research with sheets of glass which evoke the five elements: earth, water, wind, fire and air. This is important to her as she is also concerned about the environmental impact of her work. By cutting out silhouettes and bringing them together on a base made of oak, she has created, by overlaying forms, textures and colours, evocations of nature, magnificent misty landscapes nuanced by light.
“I wanted to pay homage to the organic beauty of the basic glass sheet. I am not attempting to express something,” she insists, “I let myself be guided by the material, seeking to respect it and to showcase it.” The imperfections of the glass, the colour gradients naturally generated by the mouth blowing, the accidental breakage during handling: everything complimented her method, together with constant determination.
“It was a long process,” she admits, “like a police investigation, with research, trials, errors and successes.” And then one day the sceptical remarks fell silent, replaced with enthusiastic compliments and the first orders. The collection “Paysages” (Landscapes) was born.
A bundle of energy
The youngest of her siblings, Sarah Walbaum was raised in a fertile environment: a mother who made art out of everything and dragged her through museums, a father who collected objects celebrating handcraft. She had drawn, painted and done decoupage since childhood but, putting her own vocation on the back burner, she made a profession out of supporting artists, in particular at the Comédie de Reims (Reims Theatre) under the direction of Ludovic Lagarde.
Glass for stained-glass windows reawakened the artist in her. What she sees an infinite “bundle of energy” unleashed her creative forces. A stroke of luck? She sees it instead as a series of small divine blessings which have led her to where she is now.
Today she is represented by a Parisian gallery. Her works are on display at Champagne Taittinger’s new Chromatique concept store in Reims. For the same House, Sarah has created privacy screens modelled on her collection “Paysages” for the Polychrome restaurant which will open in 2025. Vitalie Taittinger, the president, likewise gave her carte blanche to light up the residence La Belle Enchantée on the Boulevard Lundy: wall lighting, Louis Majorelle newel post finial, ceiling light and sculptures. Her glass creations can also be seen in the Philippe Mille restaurant Arbane. The trophies for the competition Reims à Table are also her work. An artist is born.
