The Heartbeat of London in Covent Garden

After having the drinks on the Radio rooftop of London Me Hotel, check out my previous post incase you missed my explanation of the amazing London skyline, I decided to go to Covent Garden to check out the Charles Pétillon public art installation “Heartbeat” during its last weekend here in London.

This art installation by French artist Charles Pétillon is his first exhibit outside of Paris and is comprised of 100,000 giant white balloons that fill the interior of the grand 19th Century Market Building. Weaving its way through the South Hall of the Covent Garden Market Building, the installation, named “Heartbeat” stretches 54 meters in length and 12 meters in width. The balloons are gentle white lights that are supposed to mimic a heartbeat, and aptly are displayed in the heart of the city of London and in the heart of this historic building and market.

As you can see, hundreds of people came out during the last weekend to view the installation and be mesmerized by these pulsating glorious white balloons. I also visited the pop-up gallery on the Piazza at Unit 5, Royal Opera House Arcade, which showcased Pétillon’s series of Invasions photographs as well as some of his other work.

On our way out, it was time to pay a visit to Shaun the Sheep, a series of tourist sheep attractions that are donated by different companies and provided a lot of amusement for adults and families alike. The pictures below are from “Shaun City.”

Charles Pétillon said: “The balloon invasions I create are metaphors. Their goal is to change the way in which we see the things we live alongside each day without really noticing them. With Heartbeat I wanted to represent the Market Building as the beating heart of this area – connecting its past with the present day to allow visitors to re-examine its role at the heart of London’s life. Each balloon has its own dimensions and yet is part of a giant but fragile composition that creates a floating cloud above the energy of the market below.”

 

The installation really made you feel the Heartbeat, everyone was drawn to the pulsing and just stood there, was mesmerized and watched. I too felt this way and it was a great distraction from the difficult week I have ahead. As I stood there watching the Heartbeat installation, I thought about how we are all fragile individuals, but at the same time we are all connected and we all support one another to create this beautiful fabric.