On Monday morning we set off from Nantes at 09:15 for a day in Rennes. We arrived late morning and after lunch there was a guided visit around the centre of Rennes to see examples of the mosaics of the Odorico family. They were a family of artists working in mosaics from the end of the 19th to the middle of the 20th century. There were 2 generations with 2 brothers in each generation, named Isidore and Vincent. The older generation’s work resembles “Art Nouveau”, the younger generation’s is more akin to “Art Deco”, very popular during the interwar period.
We all met up in the Place Ste Anne and were split into two groups – one with a French-speaking and one with an English-speaking guide. I chose the French language group and this is how it went.
Though the stars of the show were the mosaics of the Odorico family, the biggest star of all was the guide, a young woman who was phased by nothing and knew the subject thoroughly. She had a wonderful speaking voice which reminded me how great French is to listen to, not just to try to speak correctly. She moved from site to site with people milling around, bicycles going behind her, as she gave us information on the various mosaics. There were people everywhere and it even started raining at one point but she pressed on regardless, staying completely focused.
The mosaics were fascinating, sometimes they were on the walls in shops, or on the floors, which we looked at through the windows from the street. Many of the shops no longer sell what they did when the mosaics were put there. For example, a fishmonger’s motif is now in a clothes shop and a pharmacy from the 1930’s now has a totally different function.
For me the Art Deco interwar mosaics were the most interesting artistically, with roundels and waves, bright colours and the use of gold coloured mosaic pieces. We were told of the way mosaics could be manufactured away from the site and then placed in their final home later. The best example for me was the St George swimming pool. Built in 1925 it is still a swimming pool and is covered in Art Deco mosaics. We were allowed in and the wave pattern mosaics and blue colouring really set the place off. There are also large buildings with external mosaics which we saw on our travels around the centre of Rennes.
It was a marvellous experience walking the streets of a modern, bustling city and seeing so many examples of such fine mosaics, especially those from the interwar period. Unforgettable!