Justine Emard

Le principe de l’imagerie par particules magnétiques (IRM) est mis en scène dans une installation qui matérialise des mouvements physiologiques invisibles à l’œil nu.

L’écoulement de grains magnétiques à l’intérieur de cinq sculptures en verre dessine le passage du temps, transformant ainsi le mécanisme de la mémoire en matière tangible. Les fréquences physiologiques donnent naissance à des nappes sonores qui font vibrer chacune des cinq sculptures. Le temps n’est plus un écoulement vertical, il se métamorphose grâce à la programmation numérique des électro-aimants.

Les particules magnétiques qui composent l’installation sont issues de plusieurs sources et symbolisent différentes typologies de mémoires. Des matériaux métalliques façonnés par les vagues sur les plages du Débarquement jusqu’à des composants nanoscopiques issus de l’industrie électronique. Les sculptures sont réalisées en collaboration avec un verrier scientifique, reprenant le principe du sablier, en multipliant les écoulements de matière entre gravité terrestre et suspension.

(EN)

The result of a collaboration between the artist and a neuroscience laboratory, the installation Myriades showcases the principle of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and materializes physiological movements invisible to the naked eye. The flow of magnetic grains inside five glass sculptures traces the passage of time, transforming the mechanism of memory into tangible matter. Inspired by the paramagnetic tracers used in brain imaging, metal grains synchronize in a choreography based on the rhythms of magnetic fields, using data from the laboratory capturing physiological impulses from the brain’s axons.
The physiological frequencies give rise to sound waves that cause each of the five sculptures to vibrate. Time is no longer a vertical flow; it is transformed through the digital programming of electromagnets. The movements of the sculptures create a choreography activated by the mechanics of neurons and stage a myriad of possibilities. The magnetic particles that make up the installation come from several sources and symbolize different types of memory. From metallic materials shaped by the waves on the D-Day beaches to nanoscopic components from the electronics industry, they come to life, as if to recount their journey.
The sculptures are created in collaboration with a scientific glassmaker, using the principle of the hourglass, multiplying the flow of matter between Earth’s gravity and suspension. The installation unfolds like a satellite arriving on a new planet, activating terrestrial particles to create an alternative writing of time. The scenography is constructed from fragments of recycled space experiments designed for the JUICE (JUpiter ICy moons Explorer) probe and augmented by an installation by ENSAAMA students (lacquer and metal workshop).