SOLEIL DES JARDINS

Soleil des jardins is a French play on words that evokes sunflowers, always in search of the sun’s light. This installation is made up of 300 ceramic sunflowers that form a plantation to explore. However, in this field of sunflowers, the real activating element is the visitor. The flowers turn to observe you as you pass, making you, for a few moments, the light that guides them, their particular garden sun. The rhythm produced by the repetition of pieces at different heights creates a yellow tide that, when walking along the open path, seems to stop time, inviting the viewer to take a moment of introspection and observation.

Innovation and craftsmanship go hand in hand in this installation that was created using parametric design and digital modeling techniques, then built by hand in the Seville workshop of the artist Raquel Eidem, through a delicate process using traditional techniques from the ancient Andalusian art of ceramics. The firing and enameling give the pieces their own identity that encourages you to observe them closely and appreciate the importance of art and craftsmanship.

THE AUTHORS

Isabel Soto studied architecture at the Escola d’Arquitecura de Paris-Malaquais (Paris-Malaquais School of Architecture) and technical architecture at the University of Granada, and Elena G. Gracia studied architecture at the University of Seville. They combine participation in several international projects (collaborating with renowned architects such as Frank Gehry, Kengo Kuma or Renzo Piano), with their university work of teaching and research in the fields of architecture, innovation and heritage, both in the École des Ponts ParisTech and in the Escuela de Arquitectura de Sevilla (School of Architecture in Seville).

In 2020 they won the international competition of the Festival des Architectures Vives (Festival of Living Architectures) in Montpellier with the installation Soleil des jardins, then exhibited in the inner courtyard of the Palau Horlotes.