Les Franciscaines de Deauville, a former convent turned cultural center, celebrates its fifth anniversary by unveiling its first permanent commission: a monumental contemporary stained glass window by Clara Rivault. Titled "Ceux qui traversent," the double-sided work spans the entrance of the Grande Galerie, blending traditional glass techniques with photographic transfers, lead, and light. Rivault, born in 1991 and trained at Montpellier's École supérieure des beaux-arts, La Cambre in Brussels, and the Centre international d'Art verrier de Meisenthal, has previously created works for the Institut français in Paris and the church of Saint-Paterne in Saint-Pair-sur-Mer.
The commission matters because it reinforces Les Franciscaines' founding mission to bridge heritage and contemporary creation, reviving the building's spiritual history while engaging with modern artistic practices. The work evokes the site's multiple identities—cloister stones, Deauville's equestrian culture, painter André Hambourg's palette, and visitor silhouettes—making it a living piece animated by Norman light. It also highlights a rising generation of artists reinterpreting traditional crafts like stained glass through experimental photography.