Vénus et Mars, projet © Félicie d'Estienne d'Orves d'après Philippe Bréard
For the 500 years of the city of Le Havre, Félicie d’Estienne d’Orves presents her work “Venus and Mars”. The French artist converted the EDF power plant, located on the banks of the René Coty basin into a space beacon.
As from May 27, 2017, the plant’s two smokestacks will exhale in time with Mars and Venus respectively, lighting up at variable intervals adjusted to the ‘light time’ of the two planets in other words the time it would take to travel from Mars to Earth or Venus to Earth, at the speed of light. A way for Le Havre to beat to the pulse of the solar system.
The work of Félicie d’Estienne d’Orves blends sculpture, light and computer programming to question the process of vision and the conditioning of views.
Her installations call on a phenomenological understanding of the real and highlight the perception of time in a continual movement. Since 2014, the artist has focused her research on astrophysical space and the study of natural light cycles.
The installation composed by 476 LEDS distributed on the 2 chimneys will be visible in the city of Le Havre, north of France, until October 8th.
A summer in le Havre
Félicie d’Estienne d’Orves
Cover Picture : © Félicie d’Estienne d’Orves, ADAGP Paris 2017 / Photo © David Huguenin