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| February 6, 2009 | (Use j/k keys to navigate)  Email to a friend  Permalink |
La Princesse in Liverpool
Today's entry is a collection shared by photographer Peter Carr, from an event in Liverpool, England last year. Said Peter: "As part of Liverpool's Capital of Culture year, the French group La Machine were commissioned to create a large piece of street theatre, on the scale of their earlier work, the Sultan's Elephant. Many were expecting to see something using the iconic Liverbirds, the symbol of the city but instead we got a spider. The total cost of the event was £1.8 million and caused some complaints about how the funds could better be used. It also attracted protests from arachnophobe groups about how it would terrify some people. Despite these complaints the event drew in over 200,000 people in the few days it was on and produced something wondrous that got everyone in the region talking." All photos and captions courtesy Peter Carr, who has agreed to answer questions in the comments below. (23 photos total)
On Wednesday 3rd September 2008 Liverpool awoke to find a giant spider hanging from the side of a building. A team of scientists planned to move the spider to their research post setup by Albert Docks in the morning. Here, days later, the 50-foot tall "La Princesse" climbs back onto Concourse House and is dusted by magic snow sending her to sleep for the night. (© Peter Carr)
Thursday and La Princesse is transported across the city to Albert Dock. Everyone is looking out their office windows and taking to the streets to see the spider. (© Peter Carr) #
Minutes before a thunderstorm arrives in the city La Princesse arrives at Albert Dock. It took close to an hour to travel less than 10 minutes down the road. Traffic was redirected so the truck would be uniterrupted as it travelled across the city. (© Peter Carr) #
Night time falls on day 2 and people get a close up view of La Princesse. She's so close you can almost touch her. Music is played to sooth the giant spider and hundreds of people gather to simply sit and see the awe inspiring spider. For the first time you get an idea of how she'll move and just how far out her legs will reach. (© Peter Carr) #
La Princesse is heading towards the Birkenhead tunnel in the hope of making a break for it. Her feet almost crush me and my gear here. The spider weighs over 37 tonnes. (© Peter Carr) #
La Princesse heads out onto the main road and is greeted by thousands of people. Its an incredible event and despite the weather, which soon turns to torrential rain, everyone is just stunned by the giant spider. Its like nothing the city has ever seen.
(© Peter Carr) #
By this point La Princesse is right behind me and the crowd is stunned by being this close to the spider. They don't move and the magic snow starts falling and the spider keeps coming. They're so wowed by it all. (© Peter Carr) #
Later that day La Princesse wakes up again and she spots another way out. Nothing stops her and she heads out into the city. For the first time people really see the insanity behind La Machine. Its huge! (© Peter Carr) #
La Princesse wakes up one morning, and isn't happy. She heads up the steps by the Echo Arena and is forced back by firecrackers. They scare her back down the steps where she is played soothing music and magical snow falls to send her back to sleep. (© Peter Carr) #
Day turns to night and La Princesse is looking like something from a science fiction movie, complete with special effects. She is heading down this street back to the building where she was first found, to sleep. (© Peter Carr) #
Day 4 and La Princesse heads off into the main city center. This is the view from Liverpool's Town Hall. Thousands of people gather, and La Princesse decides to squirt them all with jets of water. She is followed by musicians on cherry pickers. (© Peter Carr) #
A close up of the operators of La Princesse. There are 13 in total riding on the spider, controlling her. Its an incredibly complex operation, with 50 hydraulic axes of movement, but looks so natural and easy to the outside observer. (© Peter Carr) #
Over 50,000 people came to see La Machine on Saturday. More people lined Castle Street for this event than when the Beatles returned to Liverpool. (© Peter Carr) #
Not everyone enjoyed the show. A 50 ft spider walking around town is bound to make some people feel scared. I'm not a fan of spiders myself but seeing this was something else. (© Peter Carr) #
A close up view of La Princesse reveals the operators and the mechanics involved with the spider. (© Peter Carr) #
*FOOM* Jets of water blasting from all over the place. It was at this point that I dived under my coat to protect my gear. There's rain and then there's this, which is sheer insanity. Loved it! A completely incredible few days and something I'll probably never ever see happen around Liverpool again. Street theatre on a city scale with a 50ft spider. Amazing. (© Peter Carr) #
The end struggle. Scientists vs. La Princesse. Huge special effects are used like something from a film but its right there in front of you. (© Peter Carr) #
La Princesse is lifted into Salthouse Dock for a bath. Huge jets of water are fired into the air to clean her off before she heads off to sleep outside Liverpool's iconic 3 Graces. (© Peter Carr) #
The final day and La Princesse is lifted off Concourse House. It's a complicated operatation to remove the spider, involving a couple of cranes and the time to reconnect the spider to the engine driving it around town. (© Peter Carr) #
On day one, for 5 minutes the clouds part and the spider named La Princesse is fully revealed in stunning detail. Passers by are a little surprised at how small it looks but the next few days show that La Princesse was mearly sleeping. (© Peter Carr) #
The Concourse House building is situated next to the main train station in Liverpool so everyone coming into work that day certainly got a surprise. (© Peter Carr) #
Night falls on the city and La Princesse is lit up by a search light. The road has a constant stream of traffic passing by as everyone wants a look. (© Peter Carr) #
Liverpool city center. La Princesse picks a fight with a digger and then starts to fight with some of the scientists who have been following her around. One is nearly crushed. (© Peter Carr) #
More links and information
Peter Carr - photographer
La Machine - official site
La Machine "Spider" Awakening - YouTube video
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
Wooooooooow! Great pictures!
My fav: #11, #13
Black and white was so perfect for this. I love #16 & #18, looks just like an old horror movie. Nice work!
For some reason I have the Wild Wild West song stuck in my head now.
#28/Parker - per the preamble, "All photos and captions courtesy Peter Carr..."
Aww @ #14. I would be scared too if I saw a 50 foot spider walking across town when I'm 4 years old.
yuck!!!
Awesome pics, Peter! # 2 and # 22 are my favorite! So cool you got to photograph this!!! -CarrieGPhoto
How could something like this exist in a world without god?
- Insert random biblical quote about spiders here.
On a more serious note, fantastic photographs. #9 feels like something out of an old war film.
Congrats Pete !
@ #28/Parker, I also remember people complaining in previous posts about how repetitive and non-descriptive the captions have been. I personally like this alternative captioning style.
Too bad it does not actually walk. The carrier spoils the fun... But the same mechanical spider capable of walking would be an awesome sight !
So allegorical ! I love it !
straight out of dr. who and only possible in england :)
I don't understand why this spider gets so much attention--I mean, I guess seeing it up close might change my mind but the legs don't support the body! Its a glorified parade float! What am I missing here? If it walked by itself (didn't rely on a lift) then I would love it--spider locomotion is great, but this seems like a cheesy, failed attempt. The pictures are great though.
Viva Royal de Luxe! - you can visit their huge new workshops in Nantes- and ride on their Sultan's Elephant- look for it on Youtube and other sites (I fell in love and followed it for three days in London). These people are geniuses, sculptors, magicians, actors, storytellers. Superbe.!
This just a glorfied float, and WTH was with the snow? Also, the descriptions on these almost made no sense whatsoever, I guess youre trying to describe what the french guys were trying to perform? All I kept reading was la princesse picks a fight with a local atelier magnaficke cheese sauce dispenser, la princesse goes down this street that means nothing to me, la princesse farts in your general direction...etc.
Oh my god, that poor little girl in picture 14, is going to have nightmares for the rest of her life (laughing) poor kid!!!! Must have been really cool to see in person.
La Princess needs to make an appearance at Burning Man
Maybe funding for building a mechanical spider in the US could be added to the Stimulus Package JUST KIDDING!
@29 --"@D - I hear its off to Japan in the next few years. That would be fantastic to shoot if only for the photo of Japanese people running away from a giant spider." Couldn't agree with you more! What an image!
Stimulus effect could be tested with the Spider Intervention. Match US cities with demographically-similar (and similarly economically depressed) cities. Randomly assign one of each pair of the matched cities to receive the Spider in her La Princesse glory. 1 year post-Spider Stimulus, compare. Do those cities who receive the Spider Stimulus have better economic results than those that endure Spider-less ? A major pubic policy question awaits answers.
Wow. Can you imagine how difficult that must have been to make? What absolutely talented people. It's so refreshing to just see something that makes no sense. Why does everything in this world have to conform to the same everyday events. It's so nice to see something a little bit crazy to stir people up a bit.
very good work
I can't hold myself but I'm very happy to say that they're coming from my city Nantes and this just crazy and amazing. I've seen the elephant and the little girl in the street of Nantes and others and everyone from 0 to 100 years old is just completely bewitched. Nantes is a great city, you should go ^^
I never commented on this website before but Thanks very much for those very very very good photographies.
The human being is funny.
Wow! I just followed these photo's through a friend on Twitter Peter. You have captured this mechanical beast well. I am very impressed and just love the black and white photo's, great contrast. I especially like the girl crying, good choice of DOF. Please tell me, photo 3 is this taken with a fisheye or a wide angle lens, if so what mm is it.
Keep up the great work! ;-)
Wow, Pete. The Big Picture at Boston.com Amazing. Congratulations.
To some of the doubters: I saw La Machine up close when it was on the side of that derelict office building at it was one of the most impressive sights there eyes have ever seen.
As to why it received as much attention: it's simply not something you see on the streets of Liverpool often if ever. We're still a relatively small town I don't have the kinds of parades you see in the major American cites. We have Lord Mayor's Parades with bands and floats but nothing of this scale.
Great pictures, thanks so much!
I've seen the elephant in Nantes several times, and I really hope I'll get to see the spider one day. Do Royal de Luxe have plans to go on tour with it?
Whatever they do is fabulous...
wow that's amazing I've never heard of this thing very interesting!
I took my children to see la princess, it was a magnificent spectacle and inspite of the crowds no one was hurt in the crush. The fact that is was not walking independantly did not spoil the magic. for my children. The photos really capture the atmosphere of the event ..
I Have nothing to say other than....."What the Hell!!!! and Wow!!!! "
Holy Crap!
Congrats, such marvelous pics!!!
Wanted to know more about the artists - if you too have a look at http://3quarksdaily.blogs.com/3quarksdaily/2007/03/royal_de_luxe_t.html
to get some detailled information.
Greetings from Cologne, Germany and have a nice day taking pics and enjoing :-)
@Darron Barnes - Its taken with a Sigma 10-20 on a Canon 30D. All the wide angle shots were. Others were with the Canon 24-70 f/2.8 and some of the evening shots with the Canon 50mm f/1.8.
flickr photo group of 'la machine' events :
http://www.flickr.com/groups/la_machine/
madhouse.... pictures is best
Amazing pictures but this spider is not as acceptable as the picture itself... I heard many people thought it's waste of money.
A glorified parade float? You show me an Underdog or a Heathcliff that's anywhere nearly as cool as the princess. T hank's for sharing Peter, very nice photojournalism there. I especially appreciated the black and whites.
5,000 years from now, archeologists are going to dig us up and be truly perplexed.
@Lenny Zhang - There were complaints at the cost. £1.8 million on a spider. But the money was raised specifically for arts and culture events in Liverpool. Paul McCartney's concert supposedly cost more and that was just a guy singing for a couple of hours. This was street theatre on a scale that is rarely seen. It inspired over 200,000 people for 5 days. Its something that won't soon be forgotton.
who would win in a battle with godzilla??
I was there at the Finale, it was as awesome as it looks in the pictures above!
I myself too many pictures and some video footage of the event.
Great coverage, but what a waste on money, especially the way the` economy is heading.
Who funded it specifically, Liverpool.?
No doubt taxpayers money from somewhere funded it.
A Liver bird, that is what it should have been, something majestic, not a creepy crawly.
It wouldn't be allowed in AmeriKa. I mean terrrrurrrists might be driving it!
Come to think of it, I'm amazed they let it happen in the Health and Safety Obsessed Surveillance State of the United Croneydom.
i,d like to swap it for the wife
stop laughing you havent seen her
power from spain
The only comments I would add is that I think Peter Carr the photographer got his numbers wrong, there were between 400,000 and 500,000 people visited the creature over three days. In addition six cars ran into the backs of other cars during the morning rush hour when it was first spotted on the side of the building. A record number of people signed the pledge (5) and flies disappeared from the city. La Princess escaped into the Mersey Tunnel and since then nobody has visited Birkenhead – no change there then!
Awsome!
I would love to see that thing crawl through my city :) :) :)
@J Jackson - "nearly" as good as B of the Bang? What?? Why are you even comparing them? B of the Bang is a completely static, permanent monument - La Princesse was a once in a lifetime event full of movement and theatrics. I'm not saying you HAVE to like it, but comparing it to a lifeless sculpture??
@James Aloysius - Where did you hear that? Local press reported over 200,000.
Wonderful! We want her here in Istanbul pleaseeeeeeee......
sevil from turkey
Shame on people who had "in mind" this think while at the same time there were so many wars,starving people,cruelty on animals,abuse of the environment etc.etc.!
You expected few flowers,didn't you?
No way!
I an age where all the movie use "special effects" to create something that not of the planet, it refreshing to see something like this. The photos are real, no special effects are use and this still photo movie was far better than any movie I have seen lately. I wished I was their to see it.
@ #51/Melanie "A major pubic policy question awaits answers." I think you're confusing spiders for crabs!!
Fantastic photos Peter and great comments too.
It was a big event in liverpool , one of many in the "liverpool 08" culture year
For Pete Carr an Answer from James Aloysius
I was in Liverpool that weekend and was with the crowds at the dock, Lime St, Water St and the back of St George's Hall. I counted the legs and divided by two!
Well! Actually the Echo on the Monday or Tuesday quoted 4- 500,000 and compared the number with typical football homecomings.
Whatever, they are great pictures Pete, you've got an artist's eye and you've put together a terrific selection. Cheers!
@James Aloysius - Ah right. The Daily Post said 200,000. Definitely felt on par with the football homecomings especially seeing the crowds from on top of the town hall. Glad you like them :)
Wow! You have really captured great shots of this! Wish I was there! I would love to see it in Kuwait, or better yet - crawling around in Dubai!!!
Wonderful photos Pete, beautifully capturing what was a truly awesome and inspiring event. However you really did have to be there to experience the sheer magic of this thing because it was all about the motion, and still photos can never fully convey they amazing sense of childlike wonder when you see a 50 foot spider creeping through the streets of your city in a dream-like sequence of bizarre events. This event was worth every penny bringing wonder and joy to hundreds of thousands of people over several days, and putting life in an altogether different perspective for a change. Well done for putting it back on the global map Pete!
I live in Manchester UK. I went to see this La Machine - wonderful and it brought the Arts onto the street for ordinary people. Great atmosphere in Liverpool over the time it was there! (Very hard to admit - being a MANCUNION !!!!) all ex-pats will understand !!!!
........reminds me of those old "Mars Attacks" cards from the early 60's -
Reading these comments from around the world reminds me how fortunate I was to witness this wondrous spectacle in person in my home city of Liverpool.
Here are some of my videos of the weekend:
Awakens - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGYOc5STMFw
Walks - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmrPzd1Y-J0
Finale - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOZKaKTrvlA
Can you guys bring this to Burning Man this year?
Kick you down $20 for gas !
great pix
FAR F*CKING OUT!!
I never get bored of looking at these photos and reading your commentary Pete :) Brilliant work as always :)
Fabulous shots, I was at a lot of the events (I'm actually in the right hand side of your castle street photo somewhere) and it was lovely to see a reminder of it. The thing is hugely impressive in real life and part of the appeal was that they had a whole story going on they'd built around it, so it was like dropping into a film or a documentry every time you went to see it and seeing a giant spider rampaging through your city on the news carries a real buzz to it as does seeing it in the foriegn papers in Lime Street station the following morning
It is touring other places I'm looking forwards to seeing it in an ultra modern setting like Sepang after the vistoriana and Art Deco buildings in Liverpool.
Raf O NAVARRA :
FABULOUS, FORRRRRMIDABLE......................
Raf
THAT IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dear God... I've never seen anything like it.
Tell me it's coming to New York.
# 14 -- Wow
This is high on the list of most awesome things I have ever seen. I would have so loved to have seen it in person!
Way to go Pete!
Congrats!
I'm terrified of spiders, but if I'd known about this ahead of time (and had the money), I'd totally have flown to Liverpool to see it. That is awesome.
Absolutely brilliant event - Liverpool really is one of the creative centres of the UK at the moment - and things like this in the European Capital of Culture year back in 2008 have definately put the place on the map. Stunning photographs as well - nice one Pete !
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFantastique araignée , vive les insectes.
I can't believe this. Haven't you Brits got anything better to do?
Building giant spiders ...honestly thees Englees are crazee!
And to think that Liverpool gave us the Beatles.
i am just woundre if it is still there and the peo[rpose ofit and how did the children react i think it was awsomebut scarey on the other hand for small childe=ren it looks like a momster i think it is sweet
Fantastic pictures!!!
Being in Liverpool I'm surprised the Spider didn't nicked or mugged!
The Spider was an expression of popular culture in the Liverpool Capital of Culture 2008, and whilst there are many ways in which £1.8 million could be spent it may not have thrilled 200,000 people. More than that is being spent making alterations to roads in the city, every week in the year and these works create nothing but resentment, and often create new danger spots. Lets have more popular culture and less road works.
Hey kids, right this way, the new and improved superhighway espresso barista. I'll have triple shot Americano with soy. yessir!
It is so huge!
I was luckily enough to be in the UK at the time and went to Liverpool on the Sunday to see this.The city centre was bursting and I found watching and snapping the crowd as interesting as the creature itself.
Been back to Liverpool a few time since, really very impressed by the place, it's a nice friendly city; some cool old and new architecture welded together, it's a place just begging to be photographed.
Great shots, it was like seeing War of The Worlds in 2008 version . What are we to think is it art or some prophetic vision of our future distruction? When Orsen Wells played out his gag it was all fear in the realm of the mind,. This is real and its a machine controlled by men. Im sure they weren't thinking how cute the thing was, no one builds a 40 ton robot and thinks its cute.
I certainly would not like it in my backyard. Best it stay in Liverpool or better yet in a scrape pile.
cool,i,m dutch and i find this awesome!
Oh, dear reporters, what a kind of world are we living now ?.... instead saving 1.8 millions
of British currency, UK IS EXPENDING MONEY ON CRAP. What about the poverty
worldwide? As a human being, I cannot understand.
Thanks for taking my coment,
Arci
I fear spiders too, probably because when I was growing up Disney didn't make a anthropomorphised film that had a nice, talking spider who had a heart of gold ... who helped people and was kind to everybody, ( to shield me from the real, natural world of the horror of eating and death to survive); that is until later when Charlotte's web came out. Maybe that girl didn't see that movie so she could be properly conditioned.
amazing pictures!
will ride it next week! ;)
I only got to see it arrive on the Concourse House and it was fabulous just to see it spotlighted on the side of the building. It was huge even at the top of a tower block and covered about three floors of windows.
Wish I had been able to see it moving around.
All friends and family that saw it loved it and really got into the spirit of the story. Fabulous Photos Peter. Thanks
I was in Liverpool on the sat, I was by the water jets, wounderful atmosphere,great fun, spider awesome
Fantastic photos
wondwrful . I like it. could i have a ride?
that is really cool dude
hi
i am really surprise.thank you very much.
What a sex toy!
Pure awesomeness ! Proud to live in NANTES, where those machines were born :D
Thank You Peter, for sharing this extraordinary event with me.
I especially enjoyed your b/w images and sense of story.
Congratulations on a job well done.
Cheers.
cool..... big........ freaky is it male or female
She is AMAZING. And she also is VERY attractive. BRING HER BACK. she should come and stay here in HER home.LIVERPOOL is her nest
okay i don't get it when you write the notes you say its like the spider has a mind of its own aren't the people controlling the whole thing like ones says "one morning la princesse wakes up and is not happy" how could it no be happy if it is controlled by people another one says la princesse picks a fight with a digger would they really do that someone might get hurt.
just wondering
wonderfull i really like this
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wooooooooooooooooow that is
amazing