Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Heaven of Delight

Full disclosure:  I'm not a big fan of modern art.  While I admit, much of it is creative, I keep thinking just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should do something.  However, every now and then, something in the the modern art world does strike me as something really neat.  Which brings me to the subject for today, a piece of artwork titled Heaven of Delight, created by the artist Jan Fabre, installed in 2002 at the Royal Palace of Brussels in Belgium.


Fabre's medium of choice for the work were the iridescent shells of jewel beetles (specifically those of the Sternocera acquisignata).  So with the blessing of Queen Paola, Fabre coated the ceiling panels of the Hall of Mirrors along with the central chandelier.


About one and a half million beetle shells were used and even though the photos are fascinating, I have to imagine that the effect when viewed in person is particularly stunning.  And all that beauty from a bunch of bugs!


If you'd like to take a quick video tour, you can see that here:



7 comments:

Unknown said...

Good idea! I’ve walked past the palace several times but I didn’t know it was open for visits. In Holland the royal palaces are certainly not open, our Queen likes her privacy.

Virgil S. said...

A wise lady I know once said that if you look at art created by man closely enough you will find flaws, but if you look at art created by God it is beautiful as far as you can see. So I guess a wise artist might base his work on something created by God...even bugs!

Nate Maas said...

Rob, having read a little on it. It would seem that the Royal Palace of Brussels is the "official palace," but functions more as a working office for state functions (akin to the first floor of the White House), so open for tours unless being used for State business. The royal family lives at the Royal Castle of Laeken, although interestingly enough the king and queen live in a château on the grounds while their son, Prince Philippe, lives in the castle itself.

Virgil, well said.

mary said...

I think the ceiling panels are stunning in these photos. I have never heard of this before. I must say, however, the chandelier is not to my liking. I wonder if the shells have an odor?

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