{"id":298515,"date":"2025-10-12T23:51:24","date_gmt":"2025-10-12T23:51:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/298515\/"},"modified":"2025-10-12T23:51:24","modified_gmt":"2025-10-12T23:51:24","slug":"inflatable-antique-sculptures-explore-paradox-in-paris-iconic-flea-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/298515\/","title":{"rendered":"inflatable antique sculptures explore paradox in paris’ iconic flea market"},"content":{"rendered":"

Uchronia\u2019s \u2018Paradox\u2019 at Paul Bert Serpette for 2025 F\u00eate des Puces<\/p>\n

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For the 2025 edition of the F\u00eate des Puces, held at the Paul Bert Serpette market in Saint-Ouen, Paris<\/a><\/strong>,\u00a0France<\/a><\/strong>, Uchronia<\/a><\/strong> was invited to design this year\u2019s thematic installation: Paradox. The collective, led by architect and designer Julien Sebban, developed a series of site-specific inflatable<\/a><\/strong> installations<\/a><\/strong> that transform the market\u2019s entrances and interiors into a unified scenographic experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Uchronia\u2019s proposal examines the theme of paradox through material, scale, and typological contrast. The studio introduces monumental inflatable sculptures<\/a><\/strong> that reinterpret familiar architectural and domestic forms in unexpected ways. By using inflatables, lightweight, temporary, and luminous, the installations engage with ideas of permanence, transience, and reinterpretation, echoing the eclectic and ever-evolving character of the iconic antique market.<\/p>\n

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Uchronia designs site-specific installations for the 2025 F\u00eate des Puces in Saint-Ouen | all images by Oracle Paris<\/a><\/p>\n

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NINE Inflatable installations explore expressions of paradox<\/p>\n

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Each of the market\u2019s three main entrances features a distinct installation exploring a different expression of paradox through form and function. Inflatable Antiquity: Classical columns and sculptural fragments, torsos, busts, and limbs, emerge from or break free of their architectural bases. The installation juxtaposes the stability of classical art with the impermanence of inflatable material, turning traditional symbols of endurance into light, mobile forms. Oversized Domestic Objects: Everyday vessels such as vases and amphorae are reinterpreted as monumental totems. Typically fragile and ornamental, these objects are scaled up and rendered in inflatable form, creating a visual dialogue between delicacy and exaggeration, intimacy and spectacle. Levitation Chairs: Chairs representing various design periods, from the Louis XIV era to the present, are suspended within translucent inflatable columns. The piece reframes utilitarian furniture as cultural artifacts, contrasting their practical origins with a museum-like mode of display. Together, these installations establish a visual and spatial rhythm across the market, connecting historical references with contemporary material experimentation. Through form and scale, the design by creative studio<\/a><\/strong> Uchronia challenges perceptions of weight, value, and authenticity, central notions to the flea market experience itself.<\/p>\n

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the installation transforms Paul Bert Serpette market through monumental inflatable forms<\/p>\n

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Uchronia reimagines familiar typologies through playful design<\/p>\n

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The inflatables, produced in reflective and translucent materials, respond to daylight and movement, transforming throughout the day. Their lightweight construction allows for rapid installation with minimal environmental impact, aligning with Uchronia\u2019s interest in adaptable and temporary structures. Inside, ten curated stands, including those of Arthur Bruet, Galerie Vauclair, LVS Antiquit\u00e9s, Hugo Greiner, Galerie Glustin, and Remix Gallery, feature scenographies developed in collaboration with Uchronia. Each setting interprets the Paradox theme through combinations of instinct, chance, and historical layering, mirroring the unpredictability inherent to antique collecting. With Paradox, Uchronia continues its investigation into the spatial potential of inflatables, using softness, lightness, and scale as design tools to reimagine familiar typologies within contemporary contexts.<\/p>\n

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Uchronia explores paradoxes of form, scale, and material<\/p>\n

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interiors transform into a unified scenographic experience<\/p>\n

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the work examines the theme of paradox through material, scale, and typological contrast<\/p>\n

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the curation echoes the eclectic and ever-evolving character of the iconic antique market<\/p>\n

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reflective and translucent materials respond to light and movement throughout the day<\/p>\n

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inflatable sculptures reinterpret architectural and domestic objects in unexpected ways<\/p>\n

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Uchronia reimagines classical columns and sculptures in soft, flexible forms<\/p>\n

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project info:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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name:<\/strong> Paradox<\/p>\n

designer:<\/strong>\u00a0Uchronia<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0@uchronia_world<\/a><\/p>\n

lead designer:<\/strong> Julien Sebban<\/p>\n

inflatables by:<\/strong> Digital Inflatables<\/a> | @digitalinflatables<\/a><\/p>\n

location:<\/strong> Saint-Ouen, Paris, France<\/p>\n

dates:<\/strong> September 25th \u2013 October 5th, 2025<\/p>\n

photographer:<\/strong> Oracle Paris | @oracle_paris<\/a><\/p>\n

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designboom has received this project from our\u00a0DIY submissions<\/a>\u00a0feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers\u00a0here.<\/a><\/p>\n

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edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom<\/p>\n