Versailles, France — He was possibly one of the most intriguing characters of the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympic Games last summer. Zeus is his name, the eye-catching metallic horse that galloped through that rain-filled exciting Parisian night. This unique work, created by the studio blam in the western French city of Nantes with the support of Sanofi, the French pharmaceutical firm, Zeus is currently being exhibited in the Royal Courtyard in the Château of Versailles in the heart of the castle within the perspective of the Royal Stables and the equestrian statue of Louis XIV. Zeus is mainly made from aluminum and was conceived using a host of techniques both traditional and modern ranging from metal shaping to 3D printing and silver plating. And for its mesmerizing movement the creators drew their inspiration from the pioneering photographic studies on motion by the English photographer Eadweard Muybridge evoking an aesthetic that approaches the work of the contemporary American sculptor Charles Ray.

Zeus will also extend the Olympic spirit at Versailles where the equestrian Olympic and Paralympique events were held. And the presence of the mechanical horse underscores the ties between the horse and history of Versailles where it lives on today at the Equestrian Academy, the guardian angle of traditional French equitation initiated during the reign of Louis XIV. Zeus also brings to mind the temporary exhibition at the castle, the Horse in Majesty (Cheval en Majesté), which took a look at the history of the horse in Europe over the last 400 years, until it closed last November 3rd, although there are myriad representations and evocations of the horse in the castle’s permanent collections. Zeus will be on show until November 24th. ©Trish Valicenti for The Gourmet Gazette. https://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover

See also:
https://thegourmetgazette.com/2024/08/02/olympic-outing-wild-horses-couldnt-drag-me-away-or-could-they/