Charles Pétillon 'Heartbeat' Public Art Installation At Covent Garden Until September 27, 2015

London’s 19th Century Market Building in London’s Covent Garden is home to a spectacular art installation by French artistCharles Pétillon. Named ‘Heartbeat’, the cloud-like canopy of 100,000 giant white balloons is the artist’s first public art installation. A gentle pulsating light embedded in the pseudo clouds are meant to symbolize both the beat of the human heart and also the Garden district’s sense of energy and dynamism.

The unified orbs are suspended within the grand architecture, infusing modernity into the historical space. Pétillon hopes that their unexpected presence will encourage passersby to view the locale in a different light. “The [balloons’] goal is to change the way in which we see the things we live alongside each day without really noticing them,” he says. “With Heartbeat I want to represent the market building as the beating heart of this area – connecting its past with the present day to allow visitors to re-examine its role at the heart of London’s life.”

Pétillon’s installation lives until September 27 and has launched ahread of the London Design Festivalwhich runs from September 19-27th.