Saturniidae Toccata

2021 / installation

Saturniidae Toccata explores the links between living beings, light, music and time, with the rhythm of a contemporary toccata played by two modular synthesizers. Spread over two spaces, this work reveals the metamorphosis of the Bombyx Eri (a species of silkworm) stimulated by a sound environment from its larva phase to its imago state.

Following the breeding of caterpillars, moths emerge in the exhibition space and are then moved into an aviary, a hybrid ecosystem where nature and technology are in symbiosis. At nightfall, the moths are attracted inside the aviary by UV lights, which use sensors to change the tones of the synthesizers playing live.

The live music experienced by the lepidopterans in this artificial night is recorded on magnetic tape and then broadcast to future generations of caterpillars in the breeding area, as the possible materialisation of a hereditary link in these orphan insects. This project explores the issues of memory and transmission from one generation to the next through the prism of epigenetics.

photos: Thomas Laigle, Laurent Lecat