Biography

 All my artworks start with drawings. Here in the inhabitable total artwork MAISON GUERMONT.

Milène Guermont is a sculptor who is particularly interested in tactility.

She has degrees in both art (Ensad) and engineering (Ensiacet-Brown University-Mines), she has filed several patents. She combines new technologies with the power of poetic imagination.

Following a synesthesia caused by touching a wall made of concrete, she transforms this material into sensitive and animated pieces. Weighing a few grams to several tons, her Polysensual Concrete works react to your magnetic field if you touch them.

MDR at a high school in Neuilly, SUSPENSION for the headquarters of a French company and PARAMARTHA in the largest Buddhist temple in Europe, L'ARCHE DE MONET for the City of Le Havre, SPOR for the FFB HN, AGUA for the headquarters of a corporate group, the FREE-PLANETS, INSTANTS for the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Landings and CAUSSE in Montparnasse Cemetery are some of the works that have been commissioned.

Among her exhibitions are the International Biennial of Young Artists in Rome in 2007; Art Paris and Art Basel Miami in 2008; New Art Center in New York and Nuit Blanche in Paris in 2009; European Heritage Days in 2010; City Hall of the 8th district in Paris, Salt Lake City Art Center and Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art in 2011.

In 2012, the National Archives of France organized her first personal exhibition in a museum and then she exhibited at Art Elysées and the Center d'art Contemporary d'Epinal.

In 2013, her work is presented in a solo exhibition at the Children's Museum in Paris and at the Caja Galeria in Mexico; it adorns the XL suite of a historic hotel in Marseille; it is shown at the Otto Zoo gallery in Milan and the Villa Datris-Foundation for Contemporary Sculpture.

In June 2014, her sculpture INSTANTS was installed permanently in front of the sea on Utah Beach to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the landings in the breach n°00 "Atlantic Wall", Utah Beach during World War II. Furthermore, in honor of this event, her FREE-PLANETS have been ordered as gifts for top figures throughout the world. She also creates GALLOPING FOAM for NUIT BLANCHE in front of the Town Hall of 15th district and has a show at the Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature in Paris.

In 2015, she was the "coup de cœur" of DDESSIN (Paris Contemporary Drawing Fair), had a solo video show in the permanent collections of the Fine Arts Museum of Caen, and was selected by the international jury of "2015: International Year of Light" launched by UNESCO while MINI AGUA was shown at the Villa Datris - Foundation for sculpture.

In 2016, she exhibited at the Parisian Mineralogy Museum (solo show), at the fair ART PARIS, at Passager Museum, she created the artwork A BEAT on the Eiffel Tower, the Montparnasse Tower and PHARES, and her sculpture CAUSSE was installed permanently in the Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris.

Her last monumental sculpture, PHARES (5 km of aluminium, light and lime), on Place de la Concorde, received three distinctions (COP 21, PARIS POUR LE CLIMAT, UNESCO) and was selected among 13 000 projects in 147 countries to be the only artwork for the delivery of the final report on the International Year of Light at UNESCO Headquarters.

Since March 2017, Milene has represented France at the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO), UNESCO's partner. Her sculpture made of Polysensual Concrete, MINI AGUA, is the artwork shown at the French Pavilion of the International Exhibition ASTANA 2017. Milene installs the interactive concrete SIREINE in Monaco and wins the artprize of NOVA XX (international competition of women artists who use hi-tech) in Brussels.

In 2018, she has solo shows at Trinity House, at Westminster, at JS-Pathé Foundation, at the Town Hall of the 13th district of Paris, at UNESCO, on the Seine River next to Musée d'Orsay, ... She is 1 of the 8 speakers on "Women's Achievements and Professional Attainments" at the international symposium Momowo in Turin and becomes Honorary Fellow of Queen Mary.

In 2019, she belongs to the French Delegation - she is the youngest and the only one artist - of the GSW that occurs in Basel.  She receives the Peace Hero Award from the Peace Institute and five museums throughout the world.

In 2020, Milene becomes Eisenhower Fellow, laureate of Vox Femina - Notable Women and receives the Maria & Hap Wagner Award by which her peers across the world recognized her leadership. She is also identified as an expert in tactility and emotional luxury. Her PYRAMIDION that offers you the possibility to send love & light via www.youlightme.com is part of the London Festival of Architecture. 

In 2021, her concrete artwork BALANCE is installed at Cimetière du Père Lachaise next to the sculpture of Balzac. She receives the trophy of the Projects Woman of the Year, an award from Robert Gates in Philadelphia, and the art grant “Monograph Collection” from ADAGP. One of her concrete artworks of 2008 is exhibited at the Fine Arts Museum of Laval and her first textile sculptures are exhibited in the total artwork by Gio Ponti in dialogue with some furniture by Piero Fornasetti and drawings by Camille Henrot.

In 2022, she goes to Brooklyn for an art residency, presents her work at Columbia University (her first lecture in an Ivy League school).

In 2023, Milène has a personal exhibition at the Villa du Temps retrouvé museum (with a dialogue between her MADELEINE FONDANTE and a sculpture by Rodin in particular) and participates in the exhibition JOY curated by Paul Ardenne at the Guillaume gallery in Paris, obtains a video portrait grant from ADAGP in partnership with ARTE, is for the fifth consecutive year judge at the WAF - World Architecture Festival.

In 2024, Milène Guermont receives the rank of Knight by decree of the President of France and promotion of the Prime Minister. She is named "100 Femmes de Culture" of the year at the museum Palais de Tokyo, in the presence of the Minister of Culture of France. Her inhabitable total artwork MAISON GUERMONT opens twice a month in the frame of artistic performances untitled IMMERSIONS (booking on www.maisonguermont.com), the book telling this incredible adventure will be launched at the parisan museum le Grand Palais Immersif.

Education: engineer & artist

2004-2007

• Art diploma of the National Superior School of Arts of Paris (ENSAD) with final thesis on "the emotional luxury".

2001-2004

• Guest Scientist at Brown University (RI, USA).
• Engineering diploma (major: materials/process) of the National Polytechnic Engineering Institute (ENSIACET) in partnership with Mines of Nancy (national polytechnic engineering institute). 

Selection of distinctions

Selection of lectures

• "Art without limit: New European Bauhaus?", Institut Royal du Patrimoine Artistique, Brussels.
• "Milène Guermont: art in dialogue with heritage" pour la French Heritage Society, San Francisco.
• "Milène Guermont" at Columbia University on invitation of Rick Bell, New York City.
• Lecture "Pieces of art and engineering by Milene Guermont" at GSW on invitation of Irene Natividad, Lisbon.
• Roundtable “Art/Science” with Andrei Moguchii, Andrei Cheremisinov, Boris Makevnin, Gerfried Stocker, Elena Gubanova, Dmitrii Ozerkov at the Tovstonogov Bolshoi Drama Theatre, St Petersburg.
• "Women artists" with actor Agnès Jaoui, philosopher Manon Garcia & author Tania de Montaigne, Festival 52, Lieu Secret, Paris.
• "Inevitable touch", MOMOWO 2018, Politechnico, Turino.
• "Milène Guermont, artist, engineer & woman", Wallace Collection, National Museum of England, London.
• "Interacting with PHARES & PYRAMIDIONS" for "Design for European Democracy" in the frame of SHOW ME YOUR EUROPE, Brussels.
• "PHARES: a hi-tech dialogue with our global heritage", International Forum of WFEO, Roma.
• "France with Milene Guermont and Palais de La Decouverte - Universciences " for the international women & sciences marathon of the World's Science Centers and Science Museums - ASTC, Washington.
• "PHARES, an artwork that connects", IET, London.
• "Artworks by Milene Guermont", Nova XX, Brussels.
• "Concrete touch", ISU Talks 5 Future Cities: urbanism in a digitalizing world, Braunschweig.
• Lecture "PHARES, a sustainable & modern pyramid", ASCE, New York City.
• "Polysensual Concrete walls", WWIRE, London.
• "Best of 2017" with Yoyo Maeght, PWN, Paris.
• "Concrete dreams?", Alliance Française, Astana.
• "Connected material" with Yo Kaminagaï, Mobilier National, Paris.
• "How to make dream with concrete ?", Kasteyev Museum of Arts, Almaty.
• "PHARES, light for the public" for the final report of the International Year of light, UNESCO Headquarters, Paris.
• "Milène Guermont, to touch is at the heart", Architecture-Studio, Paris.
• "From concrete to light", Salons d'honneur of the City Hall, Paris.
• "To federate to give meaning" for the National Day of the Engineer, Paris.
• "Art and emotion", San Diego.
• "Milène Guermont = sensitive concrete", Miami International University of Art and Design, Miami.
• "Du béton pour relier l'homme avec son environnement", China Europa 2009, Le Havre.
• "Milène Guermont, a creator between several fields", Biennale de St Etienne, at a distance from New-York City.
• "Milene Guermont", Miami International University of Art and Design, Miami.
• "Art to touch", New World School of Art, Miami.
• "Art, prospective & creation", Bourse du Commerce de Paris.
• "Une démarche atypique : rendre le béton vivant", CERIB, Epernon.
• "Milène Guermont, ingénieure et artiste", Institut National Polytechnique Toulouse.
• “Luxury, innovation, creation”, Nancy City Hall.
• "To make dream with concrete", Political Sciences Institute (Sc. Po.), Paris.

TV interview of Milène at Grand Palais

Film of the Peace Hero Award