The Big Bear

This work was installed at the Nouveau Bassin in 2011. It is the result of a plastic art competition launched among high school students from Mulhouse on the theme of «The planet is warming up, let’s not be afraid! ». Two high schools won the competition: the Lycée Général Lambert and the Lycée Professionnel Stoessel. Julie Wittich and Marie Kebs are the two designers of the work who were studying visual arts at the Lycée Lambert. The work was then created by students in CAP Métallerie at the Lycée Stoessel. The manufacture required 148 stainless steel pipes and several recycled metal drums. The work weighs approximately 700 kg. The image of the bear was chosen as a strong link with global warming. Choosing pierced and half-open pipes also gives the bear this fragile aspect, to signify that it is an endangered animal, already affected by the damage caused to nature and its environment. The link can also be made with the polar bears present at the Parc zoologique et botanique de Mulhouse. Finally, the title of the work refers to the celestial constellation which would be like a course to follow to find solutions to the damage that nature and the planet are experiencing.