Gymnasium Jeannette Verdier, Montargis, France
Commissioned by the Conseil Général du Centre

2007, permanent light installation

A kinetic artwork

This artwork, situated at the top of three walls that form the back of the lobby, changes and modifies its perspective. The luminous colours are projected forwards, and yet there is a sense of intangibility. Vertical geometric lines are lit up around them. Red is an active colour. The colour red reinforces the skills of sportsmen. Blue-green seems to float, it is more intangible; it is the complementary colour to red. It’s all in perfect harmony: orange-red/blue-green. This contrast is complementary and expresses the strongest degree of contrast between warm and cold colours. Cold colours seem to retreat, while warm colours optically come towards us. Monochrome surfaces with intense colours become autonomous; they transform their medium.

Time – motion – perception

When the artwork is completely lit up, it gives an impression of floating and immateriality. Particular moments provide a completely different perception of the work when it becomes dynamic. The neon tubes are pre-programmed and switch on and off in variable patterns and at varying speeds, going from red and blue to red only to blue only in succession, in repeated sequence, in reverse, etc.

Neon tubes, programming system. 80 sq. m.