of Nagasaki, Hiroshima and Fukushima), a resident goes to a clinic and learns that
she is pregnant. She heads for the exit and sees behind the glass door red smoke that
obscures the street. A reverse shot shows a close-up of the character. The color red,
symbol of radioactive hell, is reflected in her eyes. A blinking eyelid breaks the
illusion, but the young woman is now possessed—by the fear of contamination.
The sensory impact of the accident is approached differently in A Springtime at
Chernobyl (Un printemps à Tchernobyl) [34]. In this comic book, Lepage recounts
the story of his stay in the prohibited area in 2008. The graphics use black and white
and sepia tones. A two-page spread presents a twilight landscape, where electricity
pylons fill the foreground, symbol of the ‘electricity fairy’ and the modernity of
which it is the corollary. The antinomic and threatening shadow of the plant fills the
background, represented as a haunted mansion. The use of half-light and violent
contrasts add to the gloomy gravity of the scene. Drawings of the area, with its
twisted trees and buildings in ruins, follow one after the other. An overview of
Pripiat shows a petrified town that has been overtaken by vegetation, like cites
abandoned by the Maya. The town, designed to be a showcase of Soviet modernism, “takes us back to the light of an extinct empire […] like a dead star” [34].
A sudden patch of green forest marks a break with the gloom of previous images.
Lepage changes the iconic registry and shows a world without humans, where a
transfigured nature has resumed its rightful place. The artist describes his discomfort: “It’s calm all around me. These places suggest pleasure… But I’m at
Chernobyl! How can I reflect this improbable situation? Only through scientific
artifice. The number of micro Sieverts shown under each drawing. What’s in front
of me, what I’m drawing is not the truth! I don’t see the disaster but an explosion of
magnificent colors. (…) How can I draw the invisible?” [34]. This inner monologue
expresses the paradox posed by the area, which is as horrible as it is radiant. The
indecent beauty of nature, created by nature itself exerts a fascination reminiscent of
the romantic landscapes of the nineteenth century. However, the voluptuous forms
and colors suggest a betrayal of reality. This is a defining characteristic of the
representation of radioactive areas, whose construction depends on the contradictory phenomenological elements that compose it.
3.3 The Object as Agent
The cultural object, in addition to being a product, is also a representational agent.
The process of integrating the object into social reality involves the selection and
crystallization of certain elements of the representation of the nuclear accident. This
can influence thinking and contribute to the controversy over the industry. The
object is associated with diverse practices, defined by the interests and objectives of
the groups that own it. Crystallization may therefore require the instrumental use of
the cultural object, especially when groups that engage in the controversy are
ideologically motivated. Its use therefore becomes strategic, as it allows group
What Cultural Objects Say About Nuclear Accidents …
145
she is pregnant. She heads for the exit and sees behind the glass door red smoke that
obscures the street. A reverse shot shows a close-up of the character. The color red,
symbol of radioactive hell, is reflected in her eyes. A blinking eyelid breaks the
illusion, but the young woman is now possessed—by the fear of contamination.
The sensory impact of the accident is approached differently in A Springtime at
Chernobyl (Un printemps à Tchernobyl) [34]. In this comic book, Lepage recounts
the story of his stay in the prohibited area in 2008. The graphics use black and white
and sepia tones. A two-page spread presents a twilight landscape, where electricity
pylons fill the foreground, symbol of the ‘electricity fairy’ and the modernity of
which it is the corollary. The antinomic and threatening shadow of the plant fills the
background, represented as a haunted mansion. The use of half-light and violent
contrasts add to the gloomy gravity of the scene. Drawings of the area, with its
twisted trees and buildings in ruins, follow one after the other. An overview of
Pripiat shows a petrified town that has been overtaken by vegetation, like cites
abandoned by the Maya. The town, designed to be a showcase of Soviet modernism, “takes us back to the light of an extinct empire […] like a dead star” [34].
A sudden patch of green forest marks a break with the gloom of previous images.
Lepage changes the iconic registry and shows a world without humans, where a
transfigured nature has resumed its rightful place. The artist describes his discomfort: “It’s calm all around me. These places suggest pleasure… But I’m at
Chernobyl! How can I reflect this improbable situation? Only through scientific
artifice. The number of micro Sieverts shown under each drawing. What’s in front
of me, what I’m drawing is not the truth! I don’t see the disaster but an explosion of
magnificent colors. (…) How can I draw the invisible?” [34]. This inner monologue
expresses the paradox posed by the area, which is as horrible as it is radiant. The
indecent beauty of nature, created by nature itself exerts a fascination reminiscent of
the romantic landscapes of the nineteenth century. However, the voluptuous forms
and colors suggest a betrayal of reality. This is a defining characteristic of the
representation of radioactive areas, whose construction depends on the contradictory phenomenological elements that compose it.
3.3 The Object as Agent
The cultural object, in addition to being a product, is also a representational agent.
The process of integrating the object into social reality involves the selection and
crystallization of certain elements of the representation of the nuclear accident. This
can influence thinking and contribute to the controversy over the industry. The
object is associated with diverse practices, defined by the interests and objectives of
the groups that own it. Crystallization may therefore require the instrumental use of
the cultural object, especially when groups that engage in the controversy are
ideologically motivated. Its use therefore becomes strategic, as it allows group
What Cultural Objects Say About Nuclear Accidents …
145