The Loire "Voyage en patrimoine" on exhibition

A year ago, on our website we mentioned the "Voyage en patrimoine" of two people who had decided to canoe down the Loire, to discover the natural and cultural heritage linked to the river.  

They wanted to document this voyage through a wide range of ever-evolving records, to share the encounters and discoveries they made with a wide audience.  

The "Paddling along the Loire" exhibition

As such, throughout the journey, various digital technologies were used to document this immersive experience down the river.  

An exhibition, which will soon be on display in Briare in Loiret, then in November at the Observatoire Loire (La-Chaussée-Saint-Victor, 41) and at Maison de Loire du Cher (Belleville-sur-Loire, 18), retraces this journey through several characteristics of the Loire environment.  

Biology

The Loire is a protected natural area (Natura 2000 site), promoting biodiversity and allowing the river to breathe following the rises in its water level.  

During the exhibition, you will have the opportunity to see the plankton of the Loire magnified millions of times using 3D printing to see all their details, papier mâché sculptures of birds, and hear the call of some animals in an immersive way. 

Geology

Rivers shape the rock and bear witness to past and future landscapes.  Here one can study the movements of the earth and sometimes traces of humans.  

The exhibition presents a digital sandpit to understand the principle of catchment areas.  An underground labyrinth reproduced in model form to visualise its meanderings will be complemented with photographs of the walls of a tuffeau quarry.  

Culture

The activity of the local people, influenced by the course of the Loire, can be understood through the various boats that have sailed on the river. By understanding the Loire as a trade route, we can go back in time to a rich and complex river history.  

The Mantelot lock (Châtillon sur Loire, 45), reproduced in an animated model, gives visitors the opportunity to discover and understand how the bargemen manoeuvred their boats to cross the Loire and reach the side channel.  

Visitors can also "sail" on a Loire barge, the Montjeannaise, using virtual reality headsets, and discover Saint Nicholas, patron saint of bargemen.  

Travel

Travel – this irrepressible desire to discover the world when it is nowadays available at the swipe of a smartphone… 

From the construction of canoes to drawing books and photos, part of the exhibition will be devoted to travel, to allow the public to discover or rediscover the Loire.  

Photos: © Bach Photographe