Stravinsky Square

You’ve arrived at the fascinating Igor Stravinsky Square, a tribute to the famous Russian composer. This square is a captivating blend of old and new, home to a Gothic church, a whimsical fountain, and lots of street art. The Stravinsky Fountain was designed by artists Niki de Saint Phalle and Jean Tinguely in 1983. It’s a Nouveau Réalisme piece, featuring 16 sculptures spread across a 33-meter-long basin. You’ll see a Firebird, an elephant, a fox, a frog, a mermaid, and a clown hat, but also life, death and love. See if you can spot them. The square is also a canvas for talented street artists. On the left, the man who looks like Dali is actually a self-portrait by the Nantes-based graffiti artist Jef Aerosol. You’ll recognize him by the red arrow under his right eye, found on all his stencils – one could say it’s the artist’s second signature. Right next to it, you’ll find a beautiful fresco by American artist Shepard Fairey, alias Obey. This is his 100th work, painted a stone’s throw from the Georges Pompidou Center to celebrate his 30-year career. It tells us that knowledge and action are power, and that the future is unwritten. The author basically argues that fear, division, and nationalism are fueled by ignorance and apathy, and that education and action are our most powerful weapons against them. This outspoken artist is best known for his “HOPE” portrait of Barack Obama, and for his Marianne poster he gifted to Emmanuel Macron after the November 2015 Paris attacks. And finally, on the far right, there’s the latest addition to the trio. This giant alien is the biggest work ever made by Invader. This French artist has been creating mosaics all over Paris since 1994. There are nearly 4,000 of them, scattered across 79 cities around the world. For those of you who are new to this, it all began with Space Invader, a video game released in 1978. A young man took his inspiration from these pixelated aliens, and created his first piece in the Place de la Bastille, using bathroom tiles as pixels. A year later, there were over 150 little creatures from outer space all over Paris. Today, you’ll see them literally everywhere! Since 2014, we’ve come full circle; the game that inspired the art has now inspired a new game. There’s now an app that invites users to capture as many mosaics as possible, wherever they may be in the world. So keep your eyes peeled during your stay in Paris – there’s even one at the top of the Eiffel Tower! And it’s not all aliens! You’ll also find Dr House next to the Salpêtrière Hospital, and a little Pablo Picasso next to the museum of the same name. The artist enjoys invading public spaces with a creature whose job is to invade! Invader has even reached outer space, as one of his works, Space 2, now hangs on board the European laboratory module on the International Space Station.