A Vineyard in the French Riviera Had Its Walls Covered in Comic Book Art

Nestled snugly between the Maures Mountains and sun-bleached beaches of Saint-Tropez in France lies a happy little vineyard filled to the brim with brash, bold paintings inspired by comics and crime shows. Château Saint-Maur, an up-and-coming winery focusing on crisp and clear rosés and white wines, is also one of the host wineries involved in the 18th annual Art et Vin program in France, which brings together artists and independent wineries. This year, Château Saint-Maur pairs up with Marc Ferrero, the self-taught painter and creator of “Storytelling Art,” to fill the modern French vineyard with a winding tale of intrigue through oil paintings and writing.

Like a comic book broken into huge pieces and scattered across the vineyard’s main estate building, Once Upon a Time La Comitive… weaves a painted story of three adventuring antiheroes trying to bust up a big Monaco bank. “I create fictional characters and I write stories,” explains Ferrero, calling into The Creators Project from Monaco. “What I have to say, I paint through stories. And the idea was to use all the space of the castle to do a ‘Storytelling Art’ show, and to tell a story in the different places of the castle.” And so 66 original works are displayed throughout the three levels of the Château Saint-Maur castle, including oil paintings, writing, and sculptures.

Ferrero emphasizes that the writings included in and around the paintings are important to understanding and experiencing the work. “You have the lines of the characters, you have the different writings about my thinkings on Pop. You enter the story when you enter the castle. That was the idea, it was really to make people enter into a complete, fictional world.” Ferrero’s populated this fictional world with crooks, gamblers, high-powered stockbrokers, and other murkily intentioned heroes. “In U.S. and France we have two different visions of comics,” Ferrero says of his earliest inspirations, “In the U.S. when I was younger they had superhero comics, but here in France we didn't’ have superheroes… we had antiheroes. It’s more complex, concerning the morality of the characters.”

“I think it’s new art, and a lot of people don’t know this kind of art, this ‘Storytelling Art,’” explains Marc Monrose, Directeur Général of Château Saint-Maur. “And I think it’s a good opportunity for us to show this art.” Monrose explains that because of the vast array of colors and styles used in the work it all holds a wide appeal, “it’s more contemporary, and more modern, and more Pop.”

And the reaction to the show, which is on display until the end of July, has been tremendous. And though some are surprised to see such boisterous work at a winery, Ferrero thinks that’s all part of the process. “When you develop new ideas in art you need alternative spaces to show the work. Conventional places are always late. People are surprised because they don’t expect to enter into a vineyard and to see a story, but in a way it’s perfect. I think art must surprise people.”

Check out the “Storytelling Art” website for more details, or stop by Château Saint-Maur and visit the work in person if you’re travelling through the Riviera this summer.

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