Olivier PestiauxLa nature aime à se voiler

From October 16 to November 28, 2020
Opening on Thursday October 15 from 6 to 9 p.m.

There are two ways of looking at the world.
The Promethean way of making Nature speak in the service of men by forcing it through experimentation to reveal its secrets.
It is about the domination of Nature by man.
The other attitude is disinterested, it observes Nature while respecting it. This attitude is philosophical, aesthetic or poetic and respects the limits imposed by Nature. Because if this one wants to hide, isn’t it because the discovery of its secrets is a danger for man?
By technically intervening in natural processes, don’t humans risk disturbing them?

The situation we are currently experiencing, imposed for health reasons, confronts us with these questions. It very clearly poses the question of limits and benchmarks. It is the object of this exhibition which poetically questions this question.
What happens when we lose our bearings? A star photo without a landmark loses its “usefulness” since it cannot be located, it no longer provides any information. It becomes an abstract object. Yet it remains fascinating.
Maybe it’s because we have a close relationship with the cosmos? As astrophysicist Paul Murdin (Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge) writes, “The chemical elements on Earth are born from the creation and destruction of stars. Carbon and oxygen in our flesh, iron in our blood, phosphorus, sodium in our brain cells appeared with the creation of stars, even before the birth of our Sun: human beings are literally and essentially made of matter of stars. “