Project proposed by the management of Nantes Métropole’s Nature et Jardins office.
Following in the footsteps of Claude Ponti, Pedro and Johann Le Guillerm, Jean Jullien has been adding his touch to the Jardin des plantes since the summer of 2020. Down the different paths, amidst the pond and the creeks, on the grass and around the trees and branches… he has set up monumental figures representing fantastic and fun characters exclusively designed for Nantes’ botanical gardens.
Visitors discovered the exhibition’s first four installations : La Coiffe (“The Headdress”), Le Ratisseur (“The Raker”), Les Enrouleurs (“The Huggers”) and L’Arroseur (“The Sprinkler”). This summer, three new characters will join the group: L’Observateur (“The Observer”), Le Passeur (“The Smuggler”), Le Siesteur (“The Napper”)…
This exhibition, presented in three parts since 2020, is completed during 22 summer with three new creations, two of which come out of the garden …
In December 2022, 5 installations leave the Jardin des Plantes for good: the Ratisseur, the Coiffe, the Enrouleurs, the Siesteur and the Arroseur. The Spinner, the Observer and the Passer-by remain to welcome visitors at the entrances to the garden.
One creation escaped into the city: the Hisseur on the façade of the Hôtel de Ville in Rue de Strasbourg (the Débitumeur close to the château disappears at the beginning of 2025)
Born in Nantes, Jean Jullien has already left quite a mark on his hometown. He is known for his beloved posters portraying some of the city’s best-known sites, and for his work Le Nid (“The Nest”) which was perched on the top floor of Tour Bretagne – an emblem for Nantes as a travel destination from 2012 to 2020 (the tower is currently closed for renovation). Greatly inspired by pop culture – both from his childhood and from today – Julien has created a fanciful and sensory universe through his exhibitions, books, and ad campaigns for which he is commissioned both at home and throughout the world.
5 Rue Ecorchard, 44000 Nantes
How to get there?
Parking(s) nearby: Parking Gare Château, Parking Château, Parking Gare Sud 3
Public transport: Gare Nord - Jardin des Plantes, Trébuchet, Gare Sud, Lieu Unique
Self-service bicycles: Gare De Nantes Nord 2 (n°62), Gare De Nantes Nord (n°60), Jardin Des Plantes (n°63), Gare De Nantes Sud (n°70), Duchesse Anne (n°49), Lieu Unique (n°61), Saint Clément (n°64)
The Jardin des Plantes reception desk is open every day
– 8 October to 19 March inclusive: 1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m. (excluding school holidays), 10.30 a.m. to noon and 1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m. (during school holidays)
– 20 March to 7 October inclusive: 1.30pm to 6pm (excluding school holidays), 10.30am to 12pm and 1.30pm to 6pm (during school holidays)
Artworks that can be seen from the footpaths.