From the Love of Form to a Form of Love
THE GARDEN
In 2025, Martine Vaugel and Jim Vaccarella donated their garden and 61 of Martine Vaugel's sculptures to Les Cerqueux Sous Passavant and the commune of Lys Haut Layon, in the Main et Loire valley of France. It is attached to a church whose construction dates from the 18th century, and is overshadowed with peace and tranquility.
James Vaccarella and Martine Vaugel began imagining this garden in 2015. Their love of beauty and art resonates throughout its space. Jim's spiritual and poetic nature shaped the paths, and Martine's sculptures found their place with joy and gratitude. This artistic space is designed as a place of peace and contemplation, but also of music and theater, resonating with the cultural world of their region. They wish to thank all the people who shared their vision and helped create this garden.
THE BOOK
The"Garden of Sculptures" book was created so that you too can enter the vibrant world of the Vaugel • Vaccarella Sculpture Garden through its pages. Each of the 61 works is narrated by the artist, with a sensitivity that illuminates as much as it moves.
Martine Vaugel and Celine Raiss with the help of the InCreation team of Alex de Ráfols and Robin Miller, produced this magnificent book to accompany and enhance the sculpture garden. This beautiful book extends the emotion of the garden and contributes to the Martine Vaugel's association's mission, to enhance and extend the scope of her work in the future as well as the present.
A Visual Taste of the Garden...
"As an artist, I am a seeker of the divine in all things. I am also a believer in the reality of change through personal expression. I believe that art is a spiritually alive creative relationship between the artist and the viewer, with the intention of uplifting and elevating the planet through its creation.
It is my sincere desire that you will experience a sense of love and inspiration as you stroll through this garden, and that you leave with a renewed sense of "the possible" in your own lives,
Thank you for your visit."
~ Martine Vaugel
"I can't wait to read this book. I was moved to meet Martine Vaugel at her home two weeks ago."
~ Alice M.
About the creators
MARTINE VAUGEL is an internationally acclaimed sculptor and winner of two awards in Japan’s International Rodin Grand Prize Monumental Figure Competitions. She was awarded a Bronze, and a Silver Medal, and the Arthur LeDuc Jury Prize for the best sculpture 2018, in the Salon des Artistes Francais, ART CAPITOL, at the Grand Palais in Paris. She also received first prize at the Versailles Biennale of Contemporary Art in 2017.
Her works are exhibited at the Hakone Open Air Museum in Japan, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, and the Tate Modern in London. Her portraits of celebrities include Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, John Lennon, Sylvester Stallone, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ronald Reagan, Katherine Hepburn, Nick Nolte, and many others.
JIM VACARELLA is an esotericist, builder, mason, and photographer, who is best known as a musician both in America and France. He is also a published poet, writer, dramatist and extensive traveller. He is currently writing a philosophical book using his experiences at the great pyramid as the introduction.
Using the Boboli garden in Florence, Italy as an example, he designed and created the Vaugel / Vaccarella Sculpture Garden in Lys Haut Layon, France, not only as a space that would support and enhance Martine Vaugel’s sculptures, but also work as a walking exercise garden.
His passion for music allowed him to use rhythms and visuals to work together, while his love of gardening and flowers worked to create an intimate loving resource for meditative walks.
