The Saga of the Regions: Meeting with Marie Doazan
Four boxes, four regions, and a mosaic of flavors synonymous with escape! In Belle-Iloise, we like to delight you with our quality preserves, and through their countless recipes, take you on a journey. So, on the occasion of the launch of our new regional boxes, we are taking you on a little tour of France and its beautiful horizons...
After a stop at Trinité-sur-mer, Saint-Jean-de-Luz, and Menton, let's meet the woman who designed our beautiful boxes: the artist-illustrator Marie Doazan, who answers us from her apartment in Marseille !
When Léa meets Marie...
It was while looking for a new talent to illustrate our regional boxes that Léa, Product Manager in the Marketing & Innovation department of La Belle-Iloise, discovered Marie Doazan. She was looking for a unique graphic universe - that's when she came across one of Marie's works: Menton... and it was love at first sight!
" I said to myself, it’s okay, it’s her! I was instantly seduced by her style, resonating with the postcards of yesteryear, the sweet-scented memories of vacations... And luckily, it was a direct match: Marie had been a fan of the Belle-Iloise for a long time! "
MARIE DOAZAN x LA BELLE-ILOISE
Tell us about the process of creating the Regional Boxes?
This project was a real opportunity! When Léa contacted me, I was already dreaming of collaborating with La Belle-Iloise. She came to me with the format of the box and a board of inspirations, and gave me carte blanche! Having free rein is great as an artist, there is the pleasure of being a force for proposals.
I was very inspired, and I immediately started working on the illustrations. After a few small sketches in my notebook, I quickly moved on to working on colors, hand in hand with Léa!
For example, for the South West Side, we chose a red close to the color of Espelette pepper and a green specific to the hilly landscapes of the Basque Country, the bright green of the vegetation when it has just rained...
Where did you go for inspiration? Have you already stayed in each of the three regions?
The box set It looks like the South was the most obvious to illustrate because I know the South well! I am from Toulouse, my partner is from Marseille, and we have lived in Marseille for 7 years. Mimosas, lemon trees, olive trees... are themes that I have been working on for years!
For Côté Sud-Ouest, I went to dig into my childhood memories because my grandparents are from the Landes, and I spent all my holidays there. Even if the Landes is not quite the Basque Country, I took inspiration from it: for the Basque plate on the box, I reproduced the dishes from their place!
There is a region I have never been to: Brittany! I dream of seeing the colors there… I watch reports on Brittany all the time, it’s my next travel destination!
It was therefore for Plein Ouest that I needed the most inspiration: I looked in the images from Epinal, and as the Belle-Iloise is based in Quiberon, Léa accompanied me well to avoid the clichés about Brittany! When I'm in the area, I'll come say hello to the Cannery, I promise! (laughs)
How did you discover Belle-Iloise?
It was 7 years ago, at Christmas, in Sainte-Maxime! With my partner, we opened a pop-up store there for the holidays, where I exhibited my drawings and he, an eyewear maker, sold his glasses...
Our shop was right opposite the La Belle-Iloise store, and the saleswoman came to see us one evening, with the boxes opened during the day for tasting, and which had not been finished - it was absolutely adorable how she go ! We couldn’t believe how good it was, and that’s how we became fans of the Conserverie!
I was immediately fascinated by the packaging and the walls of colorful boxes in store: aesthetically, la belle-iloise has something that you don’t see elsewhere, it has a real graphic touch. So, I said to myself: I really want to work with them… Well now, it’s done, so I’m very happy! (laughs)
What is your favorite la belle-iloise recipe?
There is in particular a recipe that we love: mackerel crumbles with herbs and lemon from Menton. We make small sandwiches in front of a good series, it’s our little pleasure! I can wake up in the morning and want to get my set of 4 boxes as soon as I open them! This is actually what I do in the Marseille store, at 55, rue Paradis.
This is truly the ultimate recipe for me! And it’s so simple: there’s nothing to prepare, you just have to open it and spread it on bread! It’s a perfect portion for a little snack or an impromptu aperitif… It’s fresh, and, in the mouth, the Menton lemon gives a little final kick – I really like that! And then, I feel a bit of regional pride during the tasting! (laughs)
There is a real “Madeleine de Proust” dimension to this recipe, which reminds me of that famous Christmas in Sainte-Maxime where we discovered belle-iloise!
What does eating well mean to you?
Firstly, eating well means choosing your products carefully – being a locavore, if you can, is ideal! Knowing that it’s made in France, that it’s well done, with locally produced ingredients, is important to me… Even if it means eating less, we eat better!
And the second thing is of course the large tables! Moments of conviviality around meals, there is nothing better. I really like organizing dinners, and even better, aperitif dinners!
Typically, I love offering Spreadables because we don’t waste time behind the stove and we don’t miss half the evening! I like cooking, but I especially like it when it's practical... I find that you don't need to do everything yourself, that there are things that are done very well by producers and manufacturers. So I say to myself: why bother doing it when people do it so well!
DRAWING / TRAVELS
Can you tell us about your job as an illustrator? How long have you been drawing?
I remember always drawing. I don't get up in the middle of the night to sketch, but as soon as I have an idea, as soon as I see something that interests me, I write it down.
It’s often the colors that speak to me the most. I love sitting on the terrace and watching people go by: all it takes is a truck with a beautiful blue tarpaulin, and an orange juice placed on the table next to it, and the combination of the two colors will go make me tilt!
I don't draw line like an engraver or a technical or realistic draftsman. I like to say that I cut into color... I draw a lot of inspiration from screen printing, which superimposes colors using transparency effects.
What I like about drawing is transcribing atmospheres, moments suspended in time, without necessarily putting a character in the foreground...
Do you have a favorite drawing?
There is a drawing that I am very fond of recently: that of a bouquet of tulips in a pitcher of pastis, which was sitting at my house and which I drew about 2 years ago.
I didn't have any plans at the time, and I started drawing what I had in front of me, for the pure pleasure of drawing! It allowed me to reconnect in a moment of creative breakdown, to unblock my wrist and my mind…
It's rare in my daily life to have the time to do personal illustrations, drawings that are not commissions, so I have a lot of affection for this bouquet in its pitcher!
Do you like to travel ? What does travel mean to you?
I love travelling. At one time, I traveled abroad quite a bit, but I had a child 2 years ago, and so between Covid and motherhood, that put a damper on it! I travel differently today: I will explore closer than before. With my partner, we discover places around us: the South-East, the Drôme, the North of Italy…
For us, traveling means immersing ourselves in the daily life of the places we go and their inhabitants. For example, we like to go to local bars, have a coffee in the morning and hear the local dialect spoken, eat specialties... We immerse ourselves in local life and try to blend in as much as possible with the locals!
Summer will soon begin, a seaside memory to share? What is your program for the summer?
My recent memories are summers in Sainte-Maxime, walks among the rocks, mornings at the beach where my partner fishes while I swim nearby! We leave early, with a thermos of coffee, there is no one there...
Sea bathing at 8 a.m. is the best summer memory I think! I love this feeling of being completely outside of time, while following a daily rhythm of summer laziness…
This summer I plan to do exactly the same thing, in the same area! This time I might have more sandcastles to make with my child!
>> Find Marie Doazan on her Instagram page: mariedoz, and at the Slow galerie, a graphic arts gallery in Paris located at 5 Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, where her works can be found since 2014!
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