On November 19, the documentary “The Palm Tree” was presented during a public screening in Saint-Aubin (NE), marking the conclusion of an extraordinary artistic saga. The thirty-five minute film is now available online.
It all started with the renovation of the Bellevue sentence execution establishment (EEPB) in Gorgier (NE) in 2012. As required by law, an amount of the work is allocated to an artistic intervention. The monumental work “The Palm Tree” by Geneva sculptor Christian Gonzenbach wins the competition launched by the State of Neuchâtel.
A dozen years later, in March 2024, at the end of a journey marked by modifications to the project and punctuated by opposition from local residents, it was decided to definitively abandon the construction and installation of the palm tree. 18 meters high by the artist.
>> See the Local Colors topic dedicated to the Gorgier Palm:
An emblematic case
Although the sculpture did not physically exist, “The Palm Tree” nevertheless left its mark on residents of the region and sparked a number of discussions in the canton of Neuchâtel: “Twelve years of talking about it, talking about it again, moving it, make a big fuss about it and ultimately do nothing about it, we’re sure to remember it for a while…”, testified a local resident in the 12:45 p.m. of November 20.
“In many ways it has become an emblematic case of the issues encountered by artistic installations in public space. Inseparable from the detention center near which it was initially to be located, this project made it possible to question the posture of the population and authorities vis-à-vis a prison establishment We must conclude that ‘The Palm Tree’ has – paradoxically – fulfilled its artistic mission”, indicates the website of the canton of Neuchâtel.
Wednesday, November 19, the epilogue of this artistic saga brought together project stakeholders and people from the village. “My palm, all the residents know what it is about, so there is a sort of bond that has been created between these people who laugh about it a little bit now and that’s so much the better,” says Christian Gonzenbach at the RTS.
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A respected budget
The artist ultimately made 1,500 key rings for people living in the town. And a thirty-five minute documentary retracing the history of this monumental sculpture was produced by Jacques Matthey.
These multiple projects remained within the initial budget of nearly 100,000 francs for a project which will not see the light of day. Gorgier’s palm tree ultimately resembles a soap opera, an artistic saga which brought a work into existence perhaps even more than if it had been installed in its original form.
TV subject: Léa Jelmini
Adaptation web: ld
The documentary “The Palm Tree” by Jacques Matthey is available online via this link.
