Extension Athénéum/rue Quentin

Athénéum / Dijon, 1994

Mark1

Photographic montage based on a photograph of an architectural model and a photograph of the Halles de Dijon.

B/W photocopy wallpaper (280 x 800 cm) and green gelatine on neon.

Invited to exhibit at the Athénéum located in the heart of the University of Burgundy on the outskirts of Dijon (France), Alec De Busschère proposes the creation of an imaginary extension connecting a room of the Athénéum to the city centre, more precisely to its 19th-century iconic indoor market. 

Born out of a reflection on the relocation of universities to the outskirts of urban conurbations from the 1960s onwards in France due to the scarcity of land in city centres, this project began with the creation of a physical extension in the form of a model which was then photographed from the inside. To this photograph, the artist then added a view of the covered market and had it printed at 1:1 scale in relation to the Athénéum exhibition hall. Then, to give more realism to this black and white trompe l'oeil and to harmonise this new space, the artist added green gelatine to the neon lights illuminating the room.

At the same time, the artist played with the other entrance to this imaginary extension by displaying in the city centre, in front of the Dijon market, a life-size photographic montage of the back of the exhibition hall with a view on the University.

Mark2