On the spring of 2021 during an "apéro" (how the French speakers call an informal get together) at the ZIC site to present the MACO to rest of the local actors, a very elegant and enthusiastic lady, in her 90's shared a story about a gift she got from her ZIC neighbor.
Being an artist herself and part of the tenants of the ZIC for the past 30 years, she shared her sentiment towards the kindness of her wood-worker neighbor who offered her a welcome gift.
She was a new tenant to the place, didn't know anybody or any of their stories. Soon enough, she learned that they all shared the same desire to keep doing crafts and working with their hands.
However, to do that within the city was a big challenge. "Why?" she asks, "because less and less people are producing things with their hands and/or valuing those who do.", she answers…
She then shared about how the area, belonging to the municipality, has always been like a hovering energy who could send them away at any moment. And maybe this threat, at least at first, it's what brought the tenants from the ZIC together, so they created an association to respond and/or propose things to the municipality.
Despite all these challenges and fears, she tells how her ZIC neighbor, a fine craft wood worker, offered her a coffee table for her studio and how this has given her a warm feeling that she was on the right spot. She describes the table in detail, the color, the texture, the design and how beautiful that act of generosity was.
She has kept the table until nowadays, as a reminder of what this place has meant to her throughout the years and how important that the ZIC area has been to keep production in the city alive.
