Some works, currently being edited, have already been blooming for a few days on social networks… This Saturday, the barriers are removed and the cultural event can officially begin. From this morning at 10 a.m. until September 12, the Voyage à Nantes takes over the city with new creations as surprising as they are fun.
Porte Sauvetout, for example, is a unlikely beaver tail fish awaiting visitors. At the end of a real tree trunk provided by the city’s green spaces service, the bronze animal seems to taunt passers-by. The artist Laurent Le Deunff, who was inspired by “a drawing of a beaver from the Middle Ages” to echo this gate of the medieval city wall, also advises you to come at night. Thanks to spotlights, the animal takes its place even more in the landscape with a large shadow cast on the tram which passes right next to it.
The monumental sculpture is finished and the fountain has been relit on Place Royale. Without doubt a must for the 2021 edition of @levoyageanantes #Nantes pic.twitter.com/FpkEKPaQoL
– 20 Minutes Nantes (@ 20minutesnantes) July 2, 2021
A little further on, it is during the day that we advise you to go and see the monumental sculpture of the Place Royale. As if stranded on the fountain, which operates normally between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m., this seven-meter-high wreck (which took three months to manufacture and install) is already a must-see for the 2021 edition. adapting to the physiognomy of the fountain was a real technical feat, confides the Marseille sculptor Ugo Schiavi. We were able to vary its flow to hear rumbling, to simulate the waves to give an even more science-fictional character. »More subtle, the second part of the work is visible from the Schoelcher footbridge. A resin head, symbolizing Neptune and his shipwreck, is located below.
A giant rollerblading track
More joyful, the new playground on Place Graslin should also attract crowds, at least on sunny days. About fifty people will be able to skate together on a rollerblading track 38 meters in diameter. Equipment will be loaned free of charge on site and the less adventurous will enjoy the show on the circular benches arranged all around. There will also be demonstrations. “There should be created here a ballet of rollerblades, pedestrians, bicycles, like a perpetual and elegant movement, estimates Romain Pradeau of the Nantes architectural firm Titan. We wanted something light, positive and fresh. “
The rollerblading track opens tomorrow in front of the Graslin opera! Equipment will be lent free of charge on site. About fifty people will be able to skate at the same time @levoyageanantes #Nantes pic.twitter.com/EPxB4ZxWWt
– 20 Minutes Nantes (@ 20minutesnantes) July 2, 2021
In the rest of the city, we can come across a surprising textile work adorning the Passage Sainte-Croix, three fanciful and colorful characters by Jean Jullien at the Jardin des Plantes, revamped trams on lines 1 and 2, or even organic installations and fragrant at the Temple of Taste. Many exhibitions (Hab Galerie, castle of the dukes, art museum, unique place, museum, media library, etc.) are also on the program, one being reserved for the choice of the city’s perfume.