Wednesday Whim - Un Dixieme Printemps

Photos by Paul Kozlowski via Lively Architecture Festival via DesignBoom

Although I've never been to France I have always envisioned it to be a romantic and ethereal destination. Naturally, when I came across this recent installation set inside the courtyard of the Hotel de Griffy I felt it was my France romanticism come to reality.

As a result of the Lively Architecture Festival in Montpellier, France, hundreds of pink and white balloons hang above and below on the grass for an engaging urban art installation called "Un Dixieme Printemps." The courtyard at the Hotel de Griffy is transformed into a whimsical whirlpool of delight. 

The design team (consisting of Margaux Rodot, Michael Martin and Benoit Tastet) drew inspiration from a traditional Japanese custom called ohanami where people admire the beauty of cherry blossoms. The intent of this installation allows viewers to engage with the idea of petals dropping in the wind and allow them "to meditate on the inviolability of passing time, on the delicate balance of life but especially on its perpetual renewal" that comes with the changing of the seasons.