Le Pouce (The Thumb) in La Defense, Paris

myminifactory

Le Pouce is a 12-meter-high, 18-ton bronze sculpture depicting a thumb, located in La Defense, Paris's business district, situated on the eastern outskirts of the city. Sculpted by César Baldaccini in 1965 from an impression of his own thumb and fingerprints, it was installed in La Defense in 1994. The sculpture stands out starkly against the high-rise office spaces; its metal grey silhouette contrasts sharply with the smooth and shiny facades of the surrounding buildings. Le Pouce is not the only artwork in La Defense, but it is the most famous among the 60 other sculptures and monuments scattered throughout the district. Among the blur of towering glass skyscrapers, immaculately kept shops and cafes, glossy black cars, people rushing around in suits, and everything else one expects to find in a financial district, an 18-ton sculpture of a thumb is bound to stick out – literally. Paris has a knack for installing avant-garde sculptures in the most unlikely places. Visitors passing through La Defense may not be expecting to find oddball displays of art, but that's exactly what this park delivers. Standing over 40 feet tall and weighing more than 18 tons, "Le Pouce," or "The Thumb" was built in 1965 by sculptor César Baldaccini. César was well-known for his emphasis on resizing and reshaping objects synonymous with modernity. His relationship with technology was mutually beneficial, even as it might have seemed antagonistic. Crushing automobiles and other scrap metal, or recreating objects of nature with industrial materials, were common themes in his work. Perhaps his most famous work came in the form of "expansions" of his own hands – his thumb and fingerprints, particularly. Using modern construction methodology, César took a mold of his thumb and created several absurdly enlarged versions of it, which can now be seen in parks and museums around the world. Undoubtedly, the most famous of these is this gargantuan expansion in La Defense. Standing in stark contrast to its polished, corporate surroundings, César's thumb is discolored and ruddy, containing all of the imperfections that natural forms do. Perhaps it was not his intention to provide a counterbalance to the glossy veil of corporate ambition projected by a purpose-built business park, but that's the beauty of art – it does whatever it wants. This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open-source community effort; if you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help. Scanned using Photogrammetry (Processed with Agisoft PhotoScan)