La Face aux miroirs, 1987

La Face aux miroirs (The Face of Mirrors) is a work imagined by Niki de Saint Phalle to complete Le Cyclop’s face. It was created between 1987 and 1989, after years of reflection: the artist had alternately imagined a painted facade, or one covered with mosaics, or even with plants in the manner of a hanging garden, before finally opting for a facade of mirrors, which reflects and integrates the surrounding forest, lending Le Cyclop a certain immateriality. Each mirror was cut according to the relief of Le Cyclop's face, then covered with epoxy resin and sand for better adherence, and finally glued to the surface. The mirrors cover the entire face of Le Cyclop, a complex relief with horns, a crocodile-shaped gargoyle on the left cheek, a large eye, a large nose with nostril cavities, and an open mouth revealing sharp teeth and Le Cyclop’s interior, and from which a tongue-toboggan extends down to the ground. This tongue was transformed into a fountain in 1991, with water flowing from the mouth down into a basin. In 1993, the eye of Le Cyclop was installed, which Jean Tinguely wanted to be as bright as the sun: the pupil is covered with yellow-gold mirrors, enclosing a central projector. It was motorized by Seppi Imhof and now watches over the forest with a back-and-forth, left-to-right movement.