Maison Louis Roederer is celebrating its 250th anniversary. To mark the occasion, it could have commissioned a special cuvée, opened its cellars to a select few, or commissioned an art book. Instead, it chose something else: to entrust its walls to an artist whose practice is based on the crystallization, oxidation, and slow transformation of matter. “To create is to love”—the motto chosen for this anniversary takes on an unexpected dimension through Bianca Bondi.
A meeting in Rome, a work of art in Reims
It all began at the Villa Medici, where Bianca Bondi was a resident in 2024 and 2025, as part of the partnership that the Louis Roederer Foundation has maintained with the institution since 2020. The coincidence—if it is one—is perfect: an artist whose work explores the passage of time, transformation, and the memory of places, hosted by a foundation whose parent company has spanned 250 years of family history without ever changing hands.
The result of this collaboration will take shape on June 27 and 28 at the Roederer family’s private mansion in Reims—a venue rarely open to the public, which is also set to close for major renovations. Bianca Bondi’s installation will occupy the space from floor to ceiling, creating a dialogue between what she calls “rewilding,” the transformation of matter, and crystallized time. A work of transition for a building that is itself in transition.
Chemistry as a Language
Born in 1986, of South African and Italian descent, Bianca Bondi does not use painting or sculpture in the traditional sense. Her materials are chosen for their “potential for transformation”—what they do over time, what they become. Saltwater is her medium of choice: it crystallizes on surfaces, deposits, and reveals. This process is never entirely controlled. The artist sets the conditions; chemistry does the rest.
This connection to life—to that which changes of its own accord, to that which settles upon things—resonates deeply with the world of Louis Roederer. Organic viticulture, the “layering of time” in the cuvées, the dialogue between man and the land: these are all shared themes that make this collaboration more than just a prestige project. A convergence of methods, one might say.
Just two days
The installation will be on view for only two days—June 27 and 28—before the Hôtel Particulier closes. This time constraint is not merely incidental: it is an integral part of the work’s logic. Bianca Bondi often creates ephemeral works, tied to specific locations, intended to disappear or transform. The Hôtel Particulier Roederer will never again be what it is today. This installation will preserve something of it—in the memories of those who make the trip to Reims.
Tours are free, but registration is required. This may be the last noteworthy detail: a champagne house that opens its family home to anyone who wishes to visit, with no purchase required and no restrictions based on status. “To create is to love”—sometimes anniversaries live up to their promises.
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