Planet of Soul - Planete de l'Ame – Ο Πλανήτης της Ψυχής

One of the most brilliant Sklavos telesculptures is “Planet of Soul”/ “Planete de l'Ame”.  It is made of Granite Porphyre of Egypt and was constructed in 1964 with Sklavos first telesculpture technique (usage of oxygen-acetylene flame at temperatures over 3000oC). 

Through the existing photos of Yerassimos Sklavos with his work, “Planet of Soul”, it seems that it was one of his favorite ones. 

At the first available photo of 1964 beside his telesculpture, (see below 1) the artist seems very happy for his accomplishment. It is one of the three photos that have been found with "Planet of Soul" and Sklavos together. 

 

 

The second photo (2) is from Panathenaia 1965 and the third (3) from Sklavos personal exhibition at Athens Hilton in May 1966.

The second photo was his only known published photo during Panathenaia and Sklavos was photographed in front of "Planet of Soul" while the second telesculpture "Escape of Matter", that it was exhibited too, cannot not be seen. 

 

 

If we compare Sklavos figure between second and third photo which have been taken with a time difference of nine months (September 1965 - May 1966), the same period of Delphic light construction, we can notice that Sklavos had lost obviously weight and this is an indication of how much hard he had worked in order to engrave and complete that monumental Work at Delphi. 

Sklavos worked, with his non-contact flame technique, deeply inside the granite material of “Planet of Soul” and formed an open structure consisting of crossed multiple aerodynamic wings at the one side and of a concentration point that reminds a black hole with its plokamus at the other side. He managed to present a visualized aspect of harmonical chaos, the basic characteristic of soul. Souls travel in infinite space with their spiritual wings towards the eternal Planet of Soul. Like a black hole, Planet of Soul is a gate passage to parallel infinite dimensions.

In conclusion, “Planet of Soul” is an etheric, light and, at the same time, extremely hard stone construction.

It is not strange that Sklavos did not want to sell this extraordinary work, which together with “Creation of Movement” (1961), “In the Heart of Matter” (1962), “Infinity-Game of passages and dead ends” (1962) and “Escape of Matter” (1964) were the five core works of his first telesculpture theory and technique. At his personal exhibition of May 1966 at Athens Hilton Hotel, the exhibited “Planet of Soul” was not for sale, as documented in the Exhibition Catalogue.

Furthermore, Yerassimos Sklavos had constructed an electro-mechanic rotating device with batteries and mounted “Planet of Soul” on it. With this apparatus “Planet of Soul” was rotating during the Exhibition and the visitors enjoyed an innovative and spectacular sculpture show!

Trying to give a glimpse from that spectacular sculpture show, I present the below photo synthesis (2 4 5 3 5 4) with all the available views of “Planet of Soul” that I have found. In order to understand the sculpture shape consider that it is rotating counter-clockwise.

After his death, “Planet of Soul” was acquired by Pierre et Kathleen Granville, and in 1974 was donated to Musee de beaux arts of Dijon where it is still exhibited.

 

Sources – Πηγές:

1 Βασίλης Φιοραβάντες «Γεράσιμος Σκλάβος», Εκδόσεις Παρουσία, Φωτογραφία εξωφύλλου με τίτλο: ο Γ. Σκλάβος δίπλα από το έργο του «Πλανήτης της ψυχής».

2 Η ΚΑΘΗΜΕΡΙΝΗ-7 ΗΜΕΡΕΣ-Αφιέρωμα 24/01/1999 «Ο Διεθνής Γεράσιμος Σκλάβος» φωτογραφία σελ. 13.

3   https://www.nationalgallery.gr/library/el/ar8ra_sullogon/index.html/81082  

ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΠΙΝΑΚΟΘΗΚΗ. Η Βιβλιοθήκη & το Αρχείο της Εθνικής Πινακοθήκης-Μουσείου Α. Σούτζου. Άρθρα συλλογών. Εικονική έκθεση. Γεράσιμος Σκλάβος. 16,5Χ18,7, εκ. Φ/ΚΑΛ.64 3

Ελήφθη κατά την διάρκεια της έκθεσης του γλύπτη στο Ξενοδοχείο Hilton της Αθήνας τον Μάιο του 1966, και εντάσσεται σε μία σειρά 3 συνολικά φωτογραφιών που έχω βρει από εκείνη την έκθεση και αφορούν το γλυπτό «Πλανήτης της Ψυχής». 

4 Αρχείο Τώνη Π. Σπητέρη. Τελλόγλειο Ίδρυμα Τεχνών Α.Π.Θ. 

5    http://mba-collections.dijon.fr/ow4/mba/voir.xsp?id=00101-13968&qid=sdx_q0&n=2&e=

"Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon”: Donation Pierre et Kathleen Granville, 1974

 

You can also read the relative article:

http://yerassimossklavos.blogspot.com/2018/10/2-1965.html

ΔΙΑΠΛΑΝΗΤΙΚΟ ΦΩΣ - Τα 2 περιστρεφόμενα γλυπτά & η στήλη του Γεράσιμου Σκλάβου, Παναθήναια της Συγχρόνου Γλυπτικής, 1965
INTERPLANETARY LIGHT - The 2 rotating sculptures & the column of Yerassimos Sklavos, Panathenaia of Contemporary Sculpture, 1965
 

Για περισσότερες πληροφορίες μπορείτε να επικοινωνήσετε μαζί μου: grekasdimitrios@yahoo.gr

κιν./mob. 0030 6970257011