Le Moretti, Outdoor sculpture in La Défense business district, France.
Le Moretti is an outdoor sculpture in the La Défense business district that covers a ventilation shaft with 672 colored fiberglass tubes of varying sizes. The tubes range from 2 to 30 centimeters in diameter and extend across the entire height of the structure.
Raymond Moretti created this sculpture in 1990 as part of an artistic initiative for the business district. It was officially inaugurated in 1995 and became a permanent part of La Défense's architectural collection.
The work represents the fusion of functional urban infrastructure with modern art, bringing color to the glass and steel surroundings. Its bright appearance creates a visual contrast against the surrounding office towers.
The sculpture stands between the Neuilly Défense and Manhattan Square buildings and is easily reached via La Défense metro station and regional train services. Visitors can view the structure anytime during daylight hours as it is freely accessible from outside.
The installation features 19 different colored tubes and required roughly 2100 hours of manual labor to position them around the ventilation shaft. This intricate composition makes each tube part of a larger visual arrangement that visitors often overlook at first glance.
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