until Monday October 07 2013
Centre Pompidou-Metz
T : +33 (0)3 87 15 39 39
1, parvis des Droits-de-l'Homme
57020 Cedex 1 Metz
France
Views from above considers how an elevated perspective, from the first aerial photographs of the nineteenth century to the satellite images of Google Earth, has transformed artists' perception of the world.
The exhibition draws on this popularity to return to the origins of aerial photography and explore its impact on the work of artists and, consequently, the history of art.
When Nadar took his first aerial photographs from a hot-air balloon, circa 1860, he gave artists their first indications of the world they knew but had never seen from so high. An elevated perspective blurs landmarks and relief, slowly transforming the land into a flat surface whose visual reference points are no longer distinguishable one from the other.
Right up to today, artists, photographers, architects and film-makers have continued to explore the aesthetic and semantic implications of this extraordinary vantage point. Now this fascinating journey is the subject of an unprecedented multidisciplinary exhibition.
An innovative scenography in eight themed sections takes visitors through time as well as space, gradually rising from the balcony scenes of the first works on display to views from a hot-air balloon, an airship, an aeroplane, and finally a satellite.
