The Société Jersiaise has announced the winners of the Barreau Scholarship, in its centennial anniversary year.
This Scholarship fund dates back to 1924 when Miss A E Barreau provided the funds to establish and endow an Art Gallery at the Société Jersiaise Museum (the Barreau Le Maistre Gallery at Jersey Museum) and also an Art Scholarship for the benefit of Jersey students.
Usually, an award of up to £2,000 is made to assist with the study of fine art in the form of painting, sculpture, architecture, photography or film.
This year, a special Grant of £5,000 was made to five artists from the Vraiqu’sie Project.
This is a collaboration of Jersey-based artists exploring the island’s cultural heritage through the study of seaweed, produced by The Moving Arts Collective. Since July 2024, they have conducted field trips and research visits to deepen their understanding of seaweed’s role in Jersey’s history and community life. The project will take the form of a collaborative film and exhibition, exploring the stories of seaweed through diverse artistic practices, including film, sound, sculpture, costume, music, and performance.
The film will follow the vraicing paths to Seymour Tower, with each artist contributing a unique element, such as sculptures, songs, and seaweed-themed costumes. Their goal is to emotionally reconnect people with seaweed—Jersey’s intangible cultural heritage—through art, offering a transformative experience that ties together community, land, and nature.
Keren Le Roy Harris, representing the Collective stated: “Receiving the Barreau Art Scholarship is a significant opportunity for our collective. This support allows us to fully immerse ourselves in the Vraiqu’sie project, expanding our research and creative exploration in ways that would not have been possible individually. The scholarship reinforces the collaborative nature of our work, mirroring the communal practice of vraicing itself—rooted in shared effort, tradition, and connection.
“We are deeply grateful to the Société Jersiaise for the chance to develop our ideas together, pushing the boundaries of our artistic practices while strengthening our collective voice. This recognition supports our motivation and affirms the value of our research, inspiring us to create work that resonates beyond our group and into the wider community. We are excited about the journey ahead and the potential impact of our project, made possible through this generous support.”
Pictured: Vraiqu’sie Group of 6 artists at Jersey Archives
