Exhibition Acqua Alta - Crossing the Mirror

_{FIMFA Lx21 - Festival Internacional de Marionetas e Formas Animadas presents the exhibition Acqua Alta - Crossing the Mirror} 

^{in coproduction with OPART/Companhia Nacional de Bailado}

Acqua Alta - Crossing the Mirror is a pop-up book whose drawings and paper volumes are the décor of a story, visible in augmented reality.

Looking through a tablet or a smartphone, the ten double-pages of the book become the stage for a short dance performance - thanks to a custom-made augmented reality application. In a simple graphic stroke in black and white, ink drawings and white folded paper come together to reveal the virtual life of miniature beings ensconced in an imaginary world imbued with the imagination of water. This experience is at the crossroads of theatre, dance, comic book, animated film and “artsy” video game.

Created by Adrien M & Claire B, the masters of giving life to images, it tells the story of a woman, a man, a house. A daily routine, absurd and filled with discrepancies. But one wet rainy day, their life is turned upside down: the rising waters drown their home in an ink-coloured sea. The woman slips and disappears. Only her hair remains, and it is alive. It tells the tale of a disaster, unique and universal. It tells of losing and searching. It tells of the fear of the bizarre and otherness, and how to tame it.

<sup>Awards: 
- Excellence Award in the Art division of the 2021 Japan Media Arts Festival.
- Special AR jury award at the 2021 NewImages Festival in Paris.
- Award in the Interactive Experience category for the 2020 CITIC Press Lightening Selection.</sup>

^{"Acqua Alta – Crossing the Mirror is a delightful pop-up book – yes, just white paper and black ink – by French company Adrien M & Claire B. The 10 spreads fold out into different scenes from the story, but the magic comes when you view them through a computer tablet: two inky silhouettes – miniature, motion-captured versions of dancers Dimitri Hatton and Satchie Noro – emerge from the paper and step and swirl around, off and up from the page."
-Sanjoy Roy, The Guardian}

^{Concept and artistic direction: Claire Bardainne and Adrien Mondot Drawings and paper design: Claire Bardainne Computer design: Adrien Mondot Original music: Olivier Mellano Choreographic performance: Dimitri Hatton and Satchie Noro Computer development: Rémi Engel Paper engineering: Eric Singelin Script doctor: Marietta Ren Administration: Marek Vuiton Technical direction: Alexis Bergeron Production and booking: Joanna Rieussec Production: Margaux Fritsch, Delphine Teypaz Mediation and production: Johanna Guerreiro Production: Adrien M & Claire B Photography: Adrien M & Claire B, Romain Etienne - item Co-production and support: This book was produced by the company Adrien M & Claire B, and coproduced in France by LUX, scène nationale de Valence, with help from the support fund [SCAN] Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It was subject to a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter. The Adrien M & Claire B Company is accredited by DRAC Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region and is supported by the City of Lyon}

^BIO

^{Founded in 2011, the Adrien M & Claire B company creates digital and living art forms, ranging from stage performance to installations. It is co-directed by Claire Bardainne and Adrien Mondot, whose approach puts the human experience at the centre of technological issues, with a strong visual focus on the body and unique bespoke technologies created in- house. They strive to create living digital art: mobile, handcrafted, short-lived, and responsive. Together, they question the movement and the living in resonance with graphic and digital arts. The result is a poetic visual language blending imaginary, real and virtual dimensions while bearing unlimited opportunities for artistic exploration.}