Cuprisina francoisette (alternate name: Cuprisina tricolore francoise) is a sculpture inspired by the traditional seahorse, mounted in an old mahogany case that previously housed medical instruments from the 1950s. One of the instruments has been repurposed as the main body of the work. The shell is made from hammered copper, and the dorsal fin spines formed from 0.9mm diameter glass capillary tubes, each heated and carefully bent into shape. Each of the tubes, mounted in used primers from shotgun shells, houses a tiny blue LED that pulses gently across four different and variable patterns.

The head is made from a recycled small petrol filter and contains a single, dimly lit white LED as an eye. Soft red filament bulbs light up the tail section and pelvin fins, complemented by small white bulbs in the pectoral area.

All of the light sections can be controlled individually via an integrated switching unit. Operating in full, the sculpture exudes a red-white-blue “tricolore” ambience. It is powered by a recycled, fused laptop supply.

Vive la France!

Height x width: 420 x 400 mm approx.