À l’heure de la sieste

Sandwiched between the sea and vine-clad hills, Collioure is one of those towns where light seems particularly at home. People live in keeping with the rhythm of light. It conjures up the light of time. The latter slows down at certain times of the day, particularly after lunch. A unique time, which can be sensed in the activities taking place all around, which are themselves slowed down. Reading, rest, contemplation: everyone chooses their own way of being. This is the moment commonly called the siesta, which is evoked in the installation.

À l’heure de la sieste invites viewers to enter a space where they can lie down in front of a video projection. They see part of an interior, including a window opening onto the world. Through headphones they hear sounds that are an invitation to escape. There’s also a virtual reality headset for exploring the interior in full. The way you move through space using your gaze influences the presence of a figure and the gestures it makes. Through light, the latter’s movement reveals a representation of space and consequently volumes and colours.

This scene echoes artist Henri Matisse’s work focused on his windows during the summers he spent at Collioure.