By: Alex
To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the opening of the glass pyramid at the Louvre in France, French street artist Jean René laid out a massive 3D collage on the square surrounding the glass pyramid as a celebration. From a certain angle, the glass pyramid appears to be situated within a vast archaeological ruin or crater, which is truly astonishing. However, just one day later, this paper artwork had been trampled by visitors to the point of being "badly damaged," even unrecognizable.
▲ From a certain angle, the glass pyramid appears to be situated within a vast archaeological ruin or crater.
▲ When the glass pyramid and the Louvre are lit up at night, the artwork takes on another charm.
This large-scale 3D illusion artwork covers an area of over 183,000 square feet, mobilizing 400 volunteers and using approximately 2,000 sheets of paper. It took four days to assemble the collage. However, due to the lack of special protective measures (or perhaps the creator never intended to protect it), visitors were free to walk all over the collage, causing it to quickly become damaged.
▲ The artwork was damaged the very next day after its display.
Some “late” visitors who had wanted to see the artwork were disappointed to find only scattered waste paper, and they also complained about the poor organization. What was even more unacceptable to Parisians was that the waste paper was blown by the wind onto nearby churches, tourist attractions, and even the Seine River, creating quite an eyesore.
Sur le twitter de f@JRart i l’effet au #L’ouvre est sublime. La réalité, c une cata. Les papiers volent, les touristes (et nous) sommes effarés de la saleté. pic.twitter.com/3mf6aeFssr
— Lena Lutaud (@LenaLutaud) March 31, 2019
Jean René previously explained his work by saying that this creation is “about presence and absence, reality and memory, and also about impermanence,” showing little regret over the damage to the piece. He also said on social media: “Like life, these images are fleeting. Once completed, they must face their fate alone. The sun dries the glue; with every step a pedestrian takes, some paper is torn away. Throughout the creation process, volunteers, visitors, and souvenir collectors were all involved.”
This glass pyramid serves as the main entrance to the Louvre Museum. It was designed by Sino-American architect I. M. Pei and sparked controversy upon its completion because its overly innovative and avant-garde design was initially not accepted by the French public.
Source: Mashable