alban guého floats heads of medusa at festival des architecture vives

alban guého floats heads of medusa at festival des architecture vives
all images courtesy of alban guého architecte

the 2014 session of the festival des architectures vives is formed around the concept of ‘sensuality.’ in accordance with this theme, alban guého architecte has constructed ‘medusa’ near the entrance of hotel de griffy in montpellier, france.  influenced by greek mythology, the design team believed that the idea of sensuality was embodied by the divine character, who was the granddaughter of the union between the earth and the ocean. as a femme fatale, she continuously used her long flowing hair and blue eyes in order to attract and condemn her suitors. these physical characteristics were taken into consideration during the development phase, as it was proposed that they could be recreated in the form of an installation. the final product forces hotel visitors to confront the ‘floating heads,’ which are represented eight black umbrellas suspended by thin white strings, and interact with the dangling, thick wool fibers that add a tactile element to the project.

entrance of hotel de griffy

filaments mimick medusa’s hair

view of the installation through the surrounding columns 

view from the top exposing the supporting strings

an opening in the design of the hotel lights the space from above

visitors can touch the dangling thick wool fibers

view of an umbrella from below

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

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