François Delarozière
Encyclopedia
François Delarozière is the Artistic Director of La Machine
, a French company which is a collaboration between artists, designers, fabricators and technicians and which specialises in producing giant performing machines, often creatures. He has collaborated with French and international companies in productions ranging from traditional theatre to experimental street art.
and studied there at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He has worked in theatrical-based productions for over 20 years, first designing theatre sets and interiors. In 1987 he met Jean-Luc Courcoult, the artistic director of the French street theatre company Royal de Luxe
and over a period of years, from 1991–2008, Delarozière, Courcoult and their engineers designed and created a host of huge performing creatures, which toured various European cities. These included giraffes, rhinos, a giant Gulliver
, and the The Sultan's Elephant
.
In 2008 Delarozière severed his 21-year collaboration with Royal de Luxe
to focus on his own company, La Machine
. La Princesse
, the giant mechanical spider that visited Liverpool in September of that year, is the first in a series of six planned creatures that will debut around the world.
All his pieces start with hand-drawn blueprints, described as "think Jules Verne
via Leonardo
and Heath Robinson", and his trademark materials are unpainted wood and metal, with the workings exposed.
He described his influences as
Delarozière has been described as an "engineering genius", and Radio France said of him
La Machine (production company)
La Machine is a French production company based in Nantes, France, which is famous for La Princesse, a 50-foot mechanical spider constructed in Nantes, France.-Background:...
, a French company which is a collaboration between artists, designers, fabricators and technicians and which specialises in producing giant performing machines, often creatures. He has collaborated with French and international companies in productions ranging from traditional theatre to experimental street art.
Life and work
Delarozière was born in 1963 in MarseilleMarseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
and studied there at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He has worked in theatrical-based productions for over 20 years, first designing theatre sets and interiors. In 1987 he met Jean-Luc Courcoult, the artistic director of the French street theatre company Royal de Luxe
Royal de luxe
Royal de Luxe is a French mechanical marionette street theatre company. They were founded in 1979 by Jean Luc Courcoult. Based in Nantes, the company has performed in France, Belgium, England, Germany, Iceland, Chile, Australia and Mexico.- Gigantic puppets :...
and over a period of years, from 1991–2008, Delarozière, Courcoult and their engineers designed and created a host of huge performing creatures, which toured various European cities. These included giraffes, rhinos, a giant Gulliver
Gulliver
Gulliver can refer to:In fiction:*Lemuel Gulliver, the main character of the story Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift*Gulliver "Gully" Foyle, the lead protagonist in the science fiction novel The Stars My Destination...
, and the The Sultan's Elephant
The Sultan's Elephant
The Sultan's Elephant was a show created by the Royal de Luxe theatre company, involving a huge moving mechanical elephant, a giant marionette of a girl and other associated public art installations. In French it was called La visite du sultan des Indes sur son éléphant à voyager dans le temps...
.
In 2008 Delarozière severed his 21-year collaboration with Royal de Luxe
Royal de luxe
Royal de Luxe is a French mechanical marionette street theatre company. They were founded in 1979 by Jean Luc Courcoult. Based in Nantes, the company has performed in France, Belgium, England, Germany, Iceland, Chile, Australia and Mexico.- Gigantic puppets :...
to focus on his own company, La Machine
La Machine (production company)
La Machine is a French production company based in Nantes, France, which is famous for La Princesse, a 50-foot mechanical spider constructed in Nantes, France.-Background:...
. La Princesse
La Princesse
La Princesse is a 15-metre mechanical spider designed and operated by French performance art company La Machine. The spider was showcased in Liverpool, England, as part of the 2008 European Capital of Culture celebrations, travelling around the city between 3-7 September. In 2009, it was on...
, the giant mechanical spider that visited Liverpool in September of that year, is the first in a series of six planned creatures that will debut around the world.
All his pieces start with hand-drawn blueprints, described as "think Jules Verne
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...
via Leonardo
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...
and Heath Robinson", and his trademark materials are unpainted wood and metal, with the workings exposed.
He described his influences as
Delarozière has been described as an "engineering genius", and Radio France said of him