Cétacéa, by Emmanuel Régent

Cétacéa, by Emmanuel Régent, is an enchanting installation. It is one of the works and installations presented at the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC) 2025 in Nice.

Cétacéa, by Emmanuel Régent

This is a work by Emmanuel Régent, called Cétacéa.
A blue light bar, approximately 200 meters long, installed along the pier of the Lympia port in Nice, shines intermittently.

It is connected to a scientific beacon called Repcet that detects the passage of cetaceans in the Baie des Anges. This beacon aims to prevent collisions between ships and cetaceans. Each time a cetacean is detected, the blue line lights up.

A complex installation

Make no mistake, the work is infinitely complex: 2 tons of salt- and water-resistant material, a delicate installation to master, multiple administrative procedures, extensive collaboration with scientists from the Miraceti association (committed to the preservation of cetaceans), and hours of work with a computer engineer. But what a result!

The meaning of Cétacéa, by Emmanuel Régent

In addition to its technological prowess, the importance of this light bar comes from the fact that it makes us aware that the sea is a living environment.
Indeed, from dry land, all we see is a vast expanse of water, almost inert. Inert, were it not for the waves stirring its surface.
But this “lifeless” sea is brought to life by the detection of invisible cetaceans passing by.
We see nothing but the horizontal surface of an ordinary sea.
But we know, or rather, we now see that the sea is a living environment, where magnificent cetaceans swim.

A temporary work of art... that should be kept in Nice

A great idea from artist Emmanuel Régent. And it would be wonderful, let's dream a little, wouldn't it, if this work could remain long after the UN summit on the oceans has ended.

Emmanuel Régent

Emmanuel Régent, born in Villefranche-sur-mer, studied at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts (Ensba) in Paris and quickly made a name for himself. He has exhibited in Nice, Paris, Milan, Turin, Wassenaar (Netherlands), etc. His work focuses on painting, sculpture, and drawing, and he is not averse to using technology. He never goes to excess, preferring instead to efface himself. It is precisely this restraint, this absence, that allows the viewer to become involved and reconstruct the work. This is the measure of his work Cétacéa: the interest and meaning of the work lie beyond what we see.
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