The loudest buzz in Paris this spring is l’Atelier des Lumières, the Workshop of Lights that opened on April 13th in a 19th century iron foundry of the Chemin Vert, once an industrial neighborhood of the 11th arrondissement. The Plinchon Foundery was established in 1835 to supply the French navy and railroad companies with the high quality cast iron parts necessary to power the industrial revolution. Today, the cavernous space right in the heart of Paris’ Right Bank is reborn into a gigantic floor-to-ceiling canvas for digital art.

A Wonderland of Austrian Art

The larger-than-life projection environment becomes a canvas for Gustav Klimt’s Golden Period masterpieces.

Gems of Vienna Neoclassical architecture are decorated with Klimt frescoes.

Preserving the concrete and steel industrial bones of the place as its screen, the Atelier uses cutting-edge laser multimedia technology to cast dynamic images on some 3,200 square meters (35,000 square feet) of projection surface, including 10-meter (32-foot) high walls as well as floors and chimneys, on a music background created especially for the exhibition. As visitors wander around the vast space, they enter the artwork and become part of it.

For its inaugural event, l’Atelier stages a dazzling immersive experience to honor a key figure of the Viennese art scene, Gustav Klimt, on the hundredth anniversary of his death. In late 19 thcentury imperial Vienna, Klimt was one of the foremost decorative painters of the magnificent public buildings that lined the new Ringstrasse. By the dawn of the new century, as a leader of the Vienna Secession, a movement that sought to escape the constraints of academic art, Klimt was paving the way to modern painting. The gold and decorative motifs that characterize his work had become a symbol of this artistic revolution.

Works by Egon Schiele are included in the exhibition.

With his iconic “The Kiss” painting as the centerpiece, this homage to Klimt focuses on his Golden Period, bringing to life the sumptuous portraits, glimmering landscapes and opulent swirls that are characteristic of the artist. In addition to his best-known works on canvas, this immersive experience also features projections of his epic “Beethoven Frieze.” (n.b. the Frieze is a 7 foot high by 112 foot long fresco painted by Klimt in 1902 to decorate the Secession Building in Vienna, illustrating the human quest for happiness in a chaotic world). Also included in the projection are a number of works by Klimt’s disciple Egon Schiele (1890-1918).

In the Wake of the Vienna Secession

Friedensreich Hundertwasser ideal city emerges as a shape-shifting fresco.

A shorter, more contemporary program “Hundertwasser: in the Wake of the Vienna Secession” is dedicated to Austrian-born New Zealand artist, architect and environmentalist Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928-2000), whose artistic development was much influenced by Klimt. His ideal city gradually emerges from the monumental surfaces of the Atelier, in a dynamic, shape-shifting fresco where vibrant colors become windows and lines morph into a utopian world to the rhythm of the music.

Culturespaces

Children spontaneously interact with the shifting images.

L’Atelier des Lumières digital art center is the latest creation of Culturespaces, a leading private organization for the management of monuments, museums, temporary exhibitions and immersive digital exhibitions in France. It currently manages 13 historic sites and museums throughout the country, including the Hôtel de Caumont in Aix-en-Provence. Its philanthropic Culturespaces Foundation actively provides access to the arts for underprivileged and vulnerable children.

Good to Know

• Visiting – L’atelier des Lumières, 38, Rue Saint Maur, 75011 Paris. Open everyday from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Late night opening on Friday and Saturday until 10:00 pm. Due to the success of the exhibition, it is prudent to purchase advanced admission tickets through the Atelier’s website. Note – The current show is a temporary exhibit. It will be on view until November 11, 2018.
• Getting there – Easy public transportation is available from anywhere in Paris to the Atelier: Metro stations Voltaire or Saint-Ambroise (line 9), Rue Saint-Maur (line 3) or Père Lachaise (line 2), or Bus stop Chemin Vert (lines 6, 38 and 44).

A Few Souvenirs

Location, location, location!