One of the most iconic and recognizable places in Paris, the very symbol of the city, the Pont Neuf, has been transformed these days by a spectacular temporary installation, now finally completed: La Caverne du Pont-Neuf, the work of artist JR, famous for his XXL photo collages and trompe-l’œil interventions made all over the world, from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro to New York and Nepal. JR had already made headlines in Paris in 2023 with Retour à la Caverne on the facade of the Opéra Garnier and, in 2019, with the giant collage created around the Louvre Pyramid.
The installation, which will be open to the public free of charge 24 hours a day for three weeks starting June 6, pays homage to The Pont Neuf Wrapped, Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s celebrated intervention celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2025. The two artists are known worldwide for their monumental installations, in which historic buildings and monuments are “wrapped up” and temporarily transformed. Underlying their work is the idea of making the invisible visible – and vice versa – through an operation that is both aesthetic and conceptual, deeply linked to critical thinking in contemporary art history.
In the project designed by JR, a giant inflatable cavern envelops the oldest bridge in the French capital. The monumental illusion encompasses the 17th-century monument that has allowed Parisians to cross the Seine River for more than four centuries. The inflation of the structure, which took place on the night between Wednesday and Thursday, was the most spectacular phase of a project that had been prepared for more than a year. The canvas structure creates a powerful trompe-l’œil effect with a rocky appearance, mixing white, black and different shades of gray. Ahead of the official opening on June 6, attention will also focus on the sound component of the work. For this aspect, JR is collaborating with Thomas Bangalter, former member of Daft Punk. Bangalter, who describes himself as an “acoustic visual artist,” has envisioned “wrapping” the installation in a unique sonic fabric capable of evoking music without actually being music, as reported by Le Monde. The two artists had previously collaborated at the Opéra Garnier and a Paris gallery. The site will remain open for free every day, 24 hours a day, until June 28.
For this work, JR was inspired by the quarries from which the stones used to build the bridge were extracted, thus bringing attention back to the origins of Paris’s historic architecture. “My vision for this project is rooted as much in the past as in the present of this iconic bridge,” the artist explained. “The mission of art is to make us reflect and question what we take for granted. Art is transformation and a way to renew our view of the world around us.”
It is one of the most ambitious public art projects carried out in Paris in recent decades. The work was financed through the sale of JR’s work and thanks to the support of a number of partner companies. The structure, 120 meters long, 20 meters wide and 18 meters high, is composed almost entirely of air: 80 inflated canvas arches. A total of about 800 people are involved in the project, including technicians, workers and contractors. Full-scale tests of the structure are also currently being conducted in a hangar at Orly Airport.
[📷 Snapix; IPA]
