Vacheron Constantin recently unveiled La Quête du Temps; an astronomical clock with a bronze Astronomer that tells time through choreographed gestures. Seven years in the making, 6,293 components, now displayed at the Louvre. This is what happens when human ambition meets mechanical genius.
Yes, this captivating masterpiece surely does belong in a museum so that no preposterously wealthy person can hog it. And yet, somehow, putting it in a museum also seems inadequate for something this complex and intricate; this is an object that rewards, maybe even demands, hours if not days or weeks of examination to appreciate fully. Imagine, by imperfect-but-best-I-can-do analogy, that somehow the world could only have one copy of Shakespeare's works, a single volume incapable of being copied or otherwise duplicated, and that it would be displayed in the Louvre with the pages turning once every few minutes. Yes, that would belong in a museum to be seen and appreciated by the whole world, not in one rich person's library. But...how would anyone be able to appreciate Shakespeare under those circumstances? Everyone can see the words; everyone can read a page or two or even, if they're really determined, fifty or sixty pages. But that's far, far, far from anyone being able to truly appreciate the Bard's genius. The world would have his works, but only in a technical, material sense. Looking at this VC creation for a few minutes feels equally inadequate.
I wonder if it might be possible to create and sell, for a reasonable sum, a life-size ultra-realistic animated hologram of this piece? One that anyone, with a suitable "hologram reader," could enjoy at their leisure at home. A boy can dream, yes?
Been waiting for your two cents worth on this magnificent accomplishment….. I knew it wouldn’t take long 🧐🤓😝
Seriously though some great additional perspective and commentary ….. This thing is just mind-boggling! 🫣🤯😱
another example of why VC is justifiably still included in the so called “holy trinity” (a somewhat outdated concept/group notwithstanding)
Yes, this captivating masterpiece surely does belong in a museum so that no preposterously wealthy person can hog it. And yet, somehow, putting it in a museum also seems inadequate for something this complex and intricate; this is an object that rewards, maybe even demands, hours if not days or weeks of examination to appreciate fully. Imagine, by imperfect-but-best-I-can-do analogy, that somehow the world could only have one copy of Shakespeare's works, a single volume incapable of being copied or otherwise duplicated, and that it would be displayed in the Louvre with the pages turning once every few minutes. Yes, that would belong in a museum to be seen and appreciated by the whole world, not in one rich person's library. But...how would anyone be able to appreciate Shakespeare under those circumstances? Everyone can see the words; everyone can read a page or two or even, if they're really determined, fifty or sixty pages. But that's far, far, far from anyone being able to truly appreciate the Bard's genius. The world would have his works, but only in a technical, material sense. Looking at this VC creation for a few minutes feels equally inadequate.
I wonder if it might be possible to create and sell, for a reasonable sum, a life-size ultra-realistic animated hologram of this piece? One that anyone, with a suitable "hologram reader," could enjoy at their leisure at home. A boy can dream, yes?
This is crying out for a fully functioning 3D model to built and then viewed through the Apple Vision Pro.
The technology is certainly there to deliver it.