On Thursday 2 February, Catherine Rénier, CEO of the Swiss watchmaking Maison Jaeger-LeCoultre hosted an elegant soirée in the heart of Dubai to mark the opening of The Stellar Odyssey exhibition. The guests – including one of the Arab world’s most exciting young acting talents, British-Lebanese actress Razane Jammal – enjoyed a special live performance by the acclaimed DJ Amémé.
Staged in a spectacular pavilion ‘floating’ on the waters of the Dubai Fountain, with Burj Khalifa as its backdrop, The Stellar Odyssey leads visitors on a journey through time and space, celebrating the relationship between astronomical phenomena and the measurement of time. Dubai was chosen as the first stop on a tour of major world cities, which will continue throughout 2023 and beyond.
“The Stellar Odyssey is a deeply immersive experience, inviting you to explore the wonders that we can observe in our night sky and their symbiotic relationship with the art of watchmaking,” said Catherine Rénier. “Because the ancient cultures of the Middle East played a seminal role in the origins of time measurement, we are truly honoured to begin the world tour of this exhibition here in Dubai.”
Showcasing a careful curated selection of the Manufacture’s most remarkable historic timepieces as well as its most recent celestially-inspired timepieces, the exhibition features multi-media installations that will take visitors on a virtual journey to the cosmos. It translates the wonders of the celestial world into art installations and multi-sensory experiences, while the Atelier d’Antoine, named after the Maison’s founder, Antoine LeCoultre, shares watchmaking know-how through hands-on educational workshops based on the Stellar Odyssey theme.
In the heart of the main pavilion beneath a geodesic dome, an immersive digital show takes visitors on a virtual journey through space and time, transporting them through infinite space and 13.7 billion years of time to reveal the mysteries of the cosmos in five episodes – from the origins of our known universe to the present day.
Among the highlights of The Stellar Odyssey is also a new art installation, Passengers: Through Time by the French visual artist, Guillaume Marmin, which makes its world debut in Dubai. Specially commissioned by Jaeger-LeCoultre, its endless reflections and astonishing perspectives invite visitors to reflect on the fundamental question of what time really is.
“Jaeger-LeCoultre’s celestial theme resonates very strongly with me because, working with light and sound, we are at the crossroads of scientific, artistic, philosophical, even mystical questions,” said the artist. “I also have a strong desire to take art out of the galleries and to invest the public space, so it’s a great privilege to invite a wider public to experience my art as part of The Stellar Odyssey.”
Both artists, who flew to Dubai for the opening event, are collaborating with Jaeger-LeCoultre under the aegis of its Made of Makers programme – an ongoing series of collaborations with artists, designers and craftsmen from disciplines outside watchmaking, which explores and extends the dialogue that exists between horology and art.
The Stellar Odyssey exhibition will be open from February 4th to 23rd, from 2:00pm to 12:00am on weekdays, and from 2:00pm to 1:00am on weekends, at the Dubai Fountains (Dubai Mall Cinema Parking, lower ground entrance near Bateel) Downtown Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The exhibition is open to the public with free admission, but booking is recommended at https://www.jaeger-lecoultre.com/us-en/news/events/the-stellar-odyssey-exhibition
