Muixeranga

Marien DESNIER and Jean CORNILLON write :

The Muixeranga is a bronze sculpture which depicts a muixeranga, a performance of ancient street dances and human pyramids, which are still practiced in the town of Algemesí in Spain.

The dancers are made of bronze and some of them have a mirror instead of a face and sport the colour of the French flag. The story of this sculpture is that Riom in France and Algemesí are twin cities; the maker of this sculpture came to France during a twinning event and, for this occasion, acrobats did a real life muixeranga in the City Hall courtyard but the artist fell during the show! He set to work upon return home and built the Muixeranga sculpture for Riom.

The sculpture was put up in 2012, after much hesitation by the city council about where they could place it. It is on the Place de l'Europe opposite the Béatrice Hess municipal swimming pool.

Map showing where you can find this sculpture

This sculpture was given by Algemesi to celebrate its friendship with Riom.

We interviewed several local people about our chosen sculpture…

Most of them have of course noticed it and are vaguely aware of its story. Only two people knew about it well.

One person thinks that this sculpture is not in the right spot because it’s in the middle of a parking lot; it’s not really the best place to be able to admire it! People spend more time looking for a parking space rather than at the decoration… He also doesn't really like the sculpture: it is too infantile for him.

Another person really likes it though. She always goes past it when going for a run. She finds it very interesting: it symbolizes solidarity, friendship and patriotism. Moreover, this modern sculpture shakes up the old feel of the town, and breathes new life into the city. Also the festive side of the sculpture always makes her smile.