Artwork
Spirits of the Huveaune | Le Chemin des Fées - Manon la fée des berges
Lucy + Jorge Orta, 2012
- Ref: 7052
- Materials: Aluminium, epoxy paint,, steel plinth
- Dimensions: 175 x 80 x 80xm on arch 200m high
- Exhibition history: 2013 Parc de l’Îlot des berges, Aubagne, Marseille, France
- Courtesy: The Artists, Fondation de France program Nouveaux Commanditaires, Rives & Cultures, Bureau de Competences et Desirs
- Concept: The Chemin des Fées is a parcours of five public sculptures Spirits that map the presence of the Huveaune, a coastal river in eastern Provence that originates in the massif of Sainte Baume and flows into the Mediterranean Sea at Marseille.
The five Spirits are derived from historical texts, legends and stories around the valley of the Huveaune and recount the feminine presence associated with the river. Our sources of inspiration are the legendry, supernatural and the imaginary that perpetuate the history and foundation of Massilia, the ancient port of Marseille. Lucy + Jorge Orta
These spirits, genii loci, invest five locations along the riverbanks and weave an unprecedented link between the past and the present. They invite visitors to discover a 30km trail along the Huveaune valley and new ways to explore the river. Referring to the universal water cycle, Spirits of the Huveaune raises public awareness of environmental issues related to the river’s fate, thereby raising the question of water management in the future, here as elsewhere.
For La fée des berges – Manon , the Marcel Pagnol character, water is an instrument of power. To avenge the wrongful death of her father, Manon plugs the spring supplying water to the fictional town of Bastides Blanches, near Aubagne, before returning it to the villagers in a gesture of reconciliation.
Passionate about justice and freedom, Lucy + Jorge Orta’s Manon appears determined. She symbolises commitment and, in the water cycle, she represents the trickling that inevitably leads water from its source to the sea.
La fée des berges – Manon was inaugurated on April 6, 2013 at the Îlot des Berges Park, Aubagne.
