Marie-Ange Daudé French, b. 1964

Marie-Ange Daudé is a French artist born in 1967 who lives and works in Gironde, France.  She has been creating portraits made of feathers — portraits of women, faces imbued with gentleness and nostalgia, yet strong. This fragile and surprising material is attached to nearly invisible nylon threads, giving her portraits a sense of levitation.

Here is her artist statement:

"I trained in featherwork at the Gustave Feuillet high school in Paris. Most feather artists work for haute couture, cabarets, or crafts; few work in contemporary art. However, we can mention Maxime Leroy, Nelly Saunier, Julien Vermeulen, Valérie Tanfin, Kate McCwire, and others.

I buy my feathers from a featherwork supplier — one of the few in France. I work primarily with goose shells or rooster neck feathers, dyed or natural, but I prefer to say that I work with angel feathers. 

A feather may look fragile, but it's not. Soak it in water, and it returns to its original state once dry. Customers often ask me about its durability. I've been working on this series for 10 years, I've sold over 300 pieces, and I haven't had any returns or problems. Furthermore, feather headdresses dating from the 19th century can be found in museums. Feathers, like fur, wool, and silk, are an animal product; they are only susceptible to moths and constant exposure to UV light.

I glue the feathers onto tulle, and once the portrait is finished, I suspend the tulle inside the plexiglass box so that the portrait appears as light, airy, fragile, and transparent as possible."

Marie-Ange's work has been featured in numerous group and solo exhibitions.