In Paris this week the images of 1000 of France’s top researchers are being projected onto one of the city’s most famous buildings.

The artwork, named “1000 chercheurs parlent d’avenir” (1000 researchers speak of the future) is the creation of artist Pierre Maravel who photographed 1000 scientists and asked them each for one sentence for the future.

The images and messages pop up from four large projectors onto the face of the Panthéon, the landmark which sits on the crest of a hilltop in Paris’ academic Latin Quarter. Each has ten seconds of fame before disappearing and replaced by the next face; a mixture of recognised scientists, and the young and talented.

The messages come in all flavours; profound, hopeful, humorous, and thought-provoking. They catch the attention of pedestrians who are drawn in to see what snapshot of the future will appear next.

The display runs from 19.30 to 22.30 until Sunday the 24^th of October. More information about the project is available at the artist’s website (in French).

The event is part of France’s nationwide Fête de la Science which runs from the 21^st to the 24^th of October 2010.

Thanks to Calum MacKichan, a research student at INRA Jouy-en-Josas near Paris, for the review.

Featured image credit: paolo airenti via Shutterstock

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Leila Sattary

Leila is a freelance science writer specialising in science funding and research policy. She is a former editor of EuroScientist. She writes for a variety of online and print journals including news and features for Chemistry World, her Lab Rant column for Laboratory News and many more. In her day job she works as a Project Officer at the University of Oxford with particular interest in research policy, knowledge exchange and impact.

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