Gardienne du temps

The work Gardienne du temps, was produced as part of the CULTURAT movement, for the hôtel Gouverneur Le Noranda. 

Artist : Karine Berthiaume

Mediums : Copper, stainless steel, aluminum, acrylic paint, ink

Dimensions : 548,6 cm x 365,75 cm x 30 cm

Year : 2017

'Commissioned by the hôtel Gouverneur Le Noranda with artist Karine Berthiaume, this copper installation depicts a rooted child holding a sphere in her hands. 

Watching the raven found near her, she carefully protects the sphere, the fragile circle of unity and balance, according to artist Karine Berthiaume. Moreover, it demonstrates an attachment to a place, a group. We can imagine a dialogue between the child and the raven. The raven is a symbol of intelligence, but it is also the one who, in many cultures, sees into the future. The child asks the bird, in a way, how we can live in the future in an environment that we destroy at the same time or how to leave positive traces in the passage of time. The heavy sphere in her hands demonstrates the weight of the legacy we offer to future generations.'

(Pascale Charlebois, l’Indice bohémien,

February 2018).

In the center of the footbridge linking this hotel to the congress centre, we notice the rooted child which blends in beautifully with the architecture.

In the evening, you can see the sphere held by the child light up!

Fascinated by the power of the image, Karine Berthiaume has been exploring, for the past ten years, several art forms related to it. After studying graphic design at the Université du Québec à Montréal, she returned to Abitibi-Témiscamingue, her native region, in 2003, where an attachment and a deep-rootedness towards the territory and the nature that surrounds her took shape and oriented her work and her artistic production.

With urban scenographies set up for the Festival de musique émergente since 2010, she discovered the enormous potential of collective creations. Her works have been shown in exhibition centers and Quebec artists centers and are also part of various collections.

Website : kberthiaume.ca