During my residency on Ouessant, I wanted to engage in a project on the technological sublime. This concept, developed by David Nye, is a reinterpretation of the Kantian sublime applied to the constructions of domination over nature at the dawn of modernity. Ouessant, being an environment influenced by natural forces, seemed like a very relevant place to study through the lens of the technological sublime.
“Sublime Technologique Ouessantin” takes the form of a video installation composed of three screens arranged symmetrically: two 16mm films frame a video.
The first film presents a collection of rocks. Although all very different in their formation, their formal dynamics suggest the tectonic forces that erected them. They appear as a megastructure, between rampart and foundation.
The second film shows a collection of different constructions. They emerge in the way geological elements do, although they are artificial. Each one was built to face a particular threat (the Stiff radar tower, a bunker, a foghorn, etc.).
The video itself was filmed at the Museum of Lighthouses and Beacons and presents different types of Fresnel lenses. Once again, technology confronts natural dangers. However, the way they are filmed reveals them as luminous sculptures, almost like gems.
This project unfolded in a unique territory, still relatively preserved due to extreme conditions. This triptych confronts all forms of struggle and defense in this hostile context. Belonging to different periods and loosely connected, they nevertheless seem to be assigned to a similar purpose: the engineering of danger.
After many site surveys, I selected various constructions. Each was built to face a particular threat (the Stiff radar tower, a bunker, a foghorn, Fresnel lenses, etc.).
I then filmed these constructions in 16mm, using the same framing and shot relationships, in order to create a sort of collection of buildings, most of which emerge from the island’s tectonic forces. Though there is no formal connection between them, they appear to belong to a similar purpose: the engineering of danger.
Théodora Barat
