Tomás Saraceno launches augmented reality sculpture into the sky

Tomás Saraceno has tirelessly produced arresting artworks calling for humans to rethink their relationship to the planet. The best-known among them is perhaps the Aerocene, a black, balloon-like sculpture propelled by air warmed by the sun. The Aerocene isn’t simply a feat of engineering, it’s also a manifesto for a new age free from fossil fuels – an age of harmony between humans and nature.

These concerns echo Ruinart’s approach to winemaking, anchored in the respect and cultivation of the land. The slightest change in environmental conditions, one extra degree Celcius in the region's average temperature, can have a dramatic impact on the harvest. One degree is also the difference between the air inside and the air outside the Aerocene; it's the condition necessary to its flight. 

A few weeks ago, Saraceno launched an Aerocene Backpack over Maison Ruinart’s vineyards in Champagne, France. Blown by the winds, the delicate artwork drew a unique flight path in the sky – an Aeropglyph – which became a piece of its own: Movement. Accessible through the Aerocene app by all visitors at Maison Ruinart, Movement is now part of the champagne maker's artistic terroir. Saraceno's air-borne sculpture is a timely reminder that an alternative future is possible.

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Tomás Saraceno was chosen to be the 2021 artist celebrating the maison’s 300^th-anniversary countdown to 2029. Ruinart supports contemporary artists whose take on nature broadens our understanding of life on earth and raises awareness of the threats endangering our ecosystem. #drinkresponsibly.