At the beginning of 2026, several new residents are arriving at Motoco.
What a strange thing friendship is!
Romantic feelings have been documented, studied, sculpted, drawn, and painted. Clémence Bruno focuses her research on other relationships we all experience, yet which remain largely unexplored: friendships.
“How can we think about friendship?” This question lies at the heart of her work. She seeks to express the power of chosen bonds—free and consensual connections. In an era where people fall in love less and less, mutual support and collective thinking are growing, new forms of reflection are emerging, and friendship is becoming a political act. The moral and emotional strength that stems from it nourishes convictions.
Clémence draws from her own experiences to create her work. She transposes the codes of Renaissance painting into contemporary stories. She restores shared memories, giving them new value enriched by her nostalgia. She explores reflections, messages, and emotions by staging her own friends. These works reproduce the simple richness of a shared moment, without artifice. Some figures reappear throughout her work, accompanying her across projects. At Motoco, she shares her studio with Gabrielle Alexandre, one of the recurring figures in her work.
In each painting, every character is carefully placed within a domestic setting. She chooses her friends’ homes and apartments as the stage for her characters. The idea of “home” becomes a symbol of welcome into one’s intimacy—a form of vulnerability that signifies deep trust.
