Artist Ugo Schiavi presents ‘La Zone de Minuit’ at the former Abattoirs in Nice. This stimulating exhibition forms part of the ongoing Biennale of Arts and the Ocean, “The Sea Around Us”
La Zone de Minuit is the title of a captivating new installation that dives—quite literally—into the unlit depths of the ocean. Named after the bathypelagic layer of the sea, where sunlight no longer reaches (1,000 to 4,000 meters deep), the work immerses viewers in a haunting, hybrid environment that blends art, ecology, and digital technology.
At the heart of the installation are glass sculptures, some intertwined with reclaimed natural and industrial materials. These eerie forms coexist with computer-generated imagery and sounds developed in collaboration with a bio-acoustician, evoking the alien lifeforms that inhabit the ocean’s darkest corners.
This installation doesn’t just dazzle the senses—it makes a statement. La Zone de Minuit raises urgent questions about ecological and technological developments, particularly the looming threat of deep-sea mining. Industries are eyeing the abyssal plains for valuable metals like nickel, copper, and manganese, despite the irreversible damage this could cause to untouched ecosystems.
Schiavi’s work conjures a charged atmosphere that feels part science fiction, part ancient myth, and entirely of our time. It’s a meditation on the unknown—on the parts of the planet we’ve barely begun to understand, even as we stand to destroy them.
No stranger to major art events, Ugo Schiavi has left his mark on the international scene with appearances at Voyage à Nantes (2021), the Biennale de Lyon (2022), Noor Riyadh Festival (2023), and Manifesta 15 in Barcelona (2024). Most recently, he was commissioned to create Euphoria, a monumental sculpture for the Athletes’ Village at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The exhibition La Zone de Minuit by Ugo Schiaparelli takes place in the Grande Halle of Le 109 : pôle de cultures contemporaines in Nice, running until 24th August. Open Wednesday to Saturday, 11.00am to 6.00pm. Admission is free.
Guided visits on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2 pm and 4 pm, family visits on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 11 a.m.
![MAMAC - [PAROLE D'ARTISTE] Ugo Schiavi](https://i0.wp.com/i.ytimg.com/vi/xKSXTGtk-Rk/hqdefault.jpg?w=750&ssl=1)
The exhibition co-produced by MAMAC, Le 109 : pôle de cultures contemporaines, and La Station, in conjunction with the Nice 2025 Year of the Sea and the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC).
With the support of C4 + bermont&fils.
The glass items were designed and produced at the International Centre for Research on Glass and Plastic Arts (CIRVA) in Marseille.
Rachel Carson, The Sea around Us, Domaine Sauvage, Editions Wildproject, 2019 Original edition The sea around us, 1951 – Courtesy of Wildproject and the Rachel Carson Estate.
CONTACT DETAILS
109 : pôle de cultures contemporaines
89 route de Turin
06300 Nice
Tel: 04 89 98 25 73
All images courtesy Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur; all images by Jeanchristophe Lett unless otherwise credited