Last thursday (june 27th) in Grenoble was the opening event of my exhibition of Red Mars photomanipulations, in the city center's library.Here are a few photos of this very nice event that allowed me to publicly introduce the intention behind those pictures and the process of image making I go through each time I try to give life to Mars.
The whole exhibition content is based on the depictions of Kim Stanley Robinson in his Mars trilogy, mostly Red Mars, hence the exhibition title. 13 visions of Mars (landscapes, vehicles, habitats, life...) including a series of 5 on the space elevator, a dramatic peak of the novel and a very exciting topic to put in picture. At the exhibition entrance stands a 14th artwork, a brand new mosaic I have been designing these last months with the whole Mars trilogy in mind. It's 588 pictures relating to the exploration and colonization of Mars arranged in a mandala-like mosaic, a kaleidoscope of the wealth of KSR's novels with the 3 colors of the terraforming stages.
From the start of this long term art exploration of KSR's Mars books, I have always wish to take people in an immersive experience of what this planet really is and what it will be to live on it just like the settlers of Red Mars. Sticking to the excellent book source, I have build those visuals in a hard-SF spirit, but I wish and try to bring poetry and a sort of non-SF feel to my images.
On the opening day the public reception was very positive, even though that Mars theme was rather new to most of the attendees.
I noticed that several said they would love to see the images in much much bigger ! Well, I do to, and I am going to work on making a more immersive and a wider scale exhibition possible.
(photos by Gil Cantinelli)
