Saint-Brevin-les-Pins, France
Stuck in a perpetual state of decay on the French shore at Saint-Brevin-les-Pins, the massive metal sculpture entitled, Serpent D'Océan is a terrifying vision with an environmental message.
The skeletal serpent was unveiled in 2012 as part of the Estuaire art
exhibition which invites international artists to create large-scale
works using the environment surrounding the Loire River
between Nantes to Saint-Nazaire. The work was created by Chinese-French
artist Huang Yong Ping, who used the rough iconography of China's
mythological dragons to design the over 400 foot long art monster. The
beast is posed in slithering movement despite being nothing more than
bones, giving the dull metal frame an unsettlingly life-like quality.
The message behind the piece seems to be one of environmental
nostalgia, as though man's mistreatment of the oceans is killing not
only its life, but its very wonder and fantasy. The serpent's curves
roughly mirror the twists and turns of the nearby Saint-Nazaire bridge
linking the piece to the very modern progress it seems to be speaking
on. However, the work is read, the aspect that is without debate is the
menace projected by the fearfully undead snake.
Given its location on the shore, the Serpent D'Océan can be
seen as a strangely living creature rising from the ocean waters or a
purposefully preserved skeleton held above the shallow waves depending
on the level of the tide upon a given visit. But despite the changing
tides, fantasy, art, and horror have rarely been so steadfastly
intertwined.
