There is a strip of highway that runs through Paris France that is a hot spot for space invaders. By that I mean, art installations of a street artist known as Invader.
I have driven through this area several times now on my way through the city and have seen at least 12 or more of these little creatures. But although there are many of them, the aliens themselves remain quite elusive and taking photographs of them can be quite challenging, especially from a moving car. Often the aliens pop out of sight as quickly as they are spotted.
On my second trip through the area I was prepared for them though and was able to snap off a few blurry pictures.
I saw the little orange alien in the photo below on one such drive. The first time around it just sort of appeared out of nowhere and I remember cranking my head to look at it as we sped by in our car. I was actually pretty excited that I had seen it despite not being able to get a photo of it.
I think I saw at least 5 other Invaders during that same drive and was excited by each and every one of them.
What I like about this little guy in particular is the movement that it portrays. To me it appears to be scurrying along the side of the building almost as if it is trying to get around the corner. It is as if it is trying to hide from the cars speeding by below.
The second image was taken from the other side of the highway on our return trip.
As you can see in the photo, the alien is actually quite large. It’s a little bit bigger then the windows of the building which is fairly impressive considering it is made out of tiles and is adhered to a wall 5 to 8 feet above the ground.
The next image isn't a great one. I will admit that it is quite blurry and faded and overall quite hard to see. I don't know why I even bothered including it in this post. But since it has already been done, I may as well talk a little about it.
This one is a little different then many of the others that I have seen. First of all, it is framed in yellow and gold and appears to be a sort of portrait much like a family photograph. This seems fitting considering it is hung up in the middle column of an overpass for hundreds of people to see each and every day.
Another thing to consider with this one is how difficult it must have been to place it. It is located up high in the middle of a busy highway. To adhere it to the wall the artist would have had to hang from the overpass above or set up a ladder in the medium below. It makes me wonder whether or not the artist walked across the highway carrying a ladder on his shoulders in order to place his artwork. He must have acted quickly as well. Even if it was late at night he was no doubt seen by people driving passed him - washed in the glow of their car headlights.
The next invader is similar to the one above, though it is a little more rudimentary in its design. It is located on another center column of a highway bridge. There is actually another alien on the opposite side of the column as well. I didn't get a picture of that one though.
Another alien spotted on route. This one is red with a yellow background. I don't have much to say about it other than it really stands out against the grey background.
The last image is the same as the first (obviously). It is one of my favorite pieces by Invader overall. I like its size and I like its movement. Unlike the little orange alien above, which appears to be scurrying away from prying eyes, these sluggish beasts seem to be slithering along at a snail’s pace.
Traveling in a group out in the open, it’s almost as if they are too big to care if they are seen.
Each of Invader's artwork pieces tells its own story and each alien that he creates has its own character. This is why I like Invader so much as an artist. What do you think of his work?
