Why BÔ ?

When I was a child, I often walked barefoot in nature, that’s why this garden so speaks to me, for nature’s pregnancy. A garden is a space for sowing, cultivating and creating. A place to welcome the four seasons, to observe life, from the growth of a seed to a flower or a tree. A place where plants, insects and people come together. A place of recreation and communion between man and nature.

BÔ refers to a powerful old tree in the rainforest, which spreads out its vast branches, from which grow root branches that plunge to the ground, joining the roots in the earth to form an incredible forest-house, welcoming and alive. This tree is a symbol of life, wealth and enlightenment.

I was born in a village in Yunnan, on the border with Tibet, where I lived throughout my childhood, and where people perpetuate primitive cults, where all creatures, all things, are a spirit: the sun, the moon, water, earth, trees and flowers. Life revolves around a variety of colorful ceremonies. Man and nature harmony is the basis of this culture. During the annual festival, under the big tree in front of the village, the wise man would place a small, colorful statue, decorated with tropical fruits and flowers, the costumes made were worn by family members, from head to toe, the whole body was like a marvelous palace: decorated with birds, butterflies, animals and plants, on hats, bracelets, shoes, belts, all in colorful embroidery, a real land art. To the beat of the drums, people began to dance, the embroidered motifs flying with the movements of their bodies, an energy of joy filling the whole place. These memories of happiness and this place became my first source of inspiration on art and the construction of my world from child to adult.

After leaving China in 2001 and moving to France in 2022, I started a Franco-Chinese family in 2003. When my daughter was born, I felt the strength of this transmission to her: what value could I pass on to her? And my own birth: what is the meaning of my existence? The idea of a garden came naturally to me. This double birth paved the way for the creation of this BÔ.

This garden is dedicated to my mother and my three children.

Xuefeng Chen, 2024

What is BÔ?

BÔ – Le Jardin Imaginaire is a series of installations and monumental sculptures that recreate an imaginary, dreamlike world, an open-air garden-museum without walls or borders. It will eventually comprise some twenty colorful sculptures, ranging in height from 2 to 5 meters. Each will have its own story and symbolism. Linked by footpaths, they will communicate with each other, with plantings and fountains between them, and some of them will be animated, interacting with natural elements such as light, wind and rain. Together, they embody the spirit of this artistic imaginary garden, reflecting the harmony between man and nature, in an echo between Art/Nature/Gardening/Science/Transmission.