Today, December 19, 2025, the Institut Paoli-Calmettes (IPC) in Marseille inaugurates a new installation by Michelangelo Pistoletto, the evolution of the project begun with the multi-confessional Retreat, created by the artist in 2000. The symbol of the Third Paradise thus enters the hospital spaces as an element of continuity and renewal.

The new work, a large, colorful installation suspended in the main hall, introduces to the institute a symbol that unites nature and human creation, science and social responsibility. It responds to a need that has matured over time: to make the path leading to the Retreat more visible, more legible, and more accessible, now located within a significantly expanded and renovated hospital.

2000: The Birth of a Place Without a Parallel

When the Institut Paoli-Calmettes decided in 2000 to create a space dedicated to prayer, meditation, and spiritual reflection, the mandate given to Pistoletto, as part of the Nouveaux Commanditaires program supported by the Fondation de France, was clear: to conceive a place that would welcome all forms of spirituality, without hierarchies or exclusions.

The result was a radically innovative environment for the French hospital context: a place of silence, listening, and plurality built around a central work, the Cubic Meter of Infinity, composed of six inward-facing mirrors. A simple yet dizzying structure, capable of encompassing the idea of ​​infinity not as a visible image, but as a mental experience.

Around the Cubic Meter, the master designed five alcoves: three dedicated to the great monotheistic religions, one to Buddhism, and one to non-denominational cultures and knowledge. Lightweight materials allowed the spaces to be separated and simultaneously "glimpsed," evoking the Mediterranean coexistence that Marseille has historically exemplified. For patients, families, and workers, the place quickly became a refuge and a point of reference.

An ethical continuity spanning the decades

Professor Dominique Maraninchi, then Director General of the IPC, described the project as the result of three commitments: an ethical commitment, to not exclude; a commitment of necessity, to welcome all forms of meditation; and a deontological commitment, to integrate the spiritual dimension into care pathways.

Twenty years later, Professor Norbert Vey, now Director General of the Institut, recalls that it is "an important work of contemporary art," an integral part of the site's identity and a reflection of the hospital's mission: to care for the whole person, in their vulnerability and strength.

Meanwhile, the Lieu de recueillement has never ceased to be lived in. Despite being a "discreet place," as it is often called, it remains frequented daily by patients, families, and professionals who recognize it as a threshold of peace amidst the incessant pace of the hospital.

2025: From Meditation to Hope

With the architectural evolution of the IPC in recent years, a new relationship between the Retreat Area and the patient journeys has become necessary. The Institute's management thus invited Pistoletto to continue the dialogue begun in 2000, imagining a symbolic and narrative extension of the journey to the Retreat Area.

The artist responded by introducing the Third Paradise, a symbol that for over two decades has summarized his research: uniting the "paradise" of nature and that of artificial creation, generating a third space of balance, responsibility, and coexistence. The form itself is a natural extension of the Cubic Meter of Infinity: no longer an infinity enclosed within, but an infinity that opens outward.

The new installation, along with the scenographic path connecting the various spaces, ideally accompanies the visitor from inner contemplation to collective hope, from individual silence to the search for a new common sense.

An anniversary that is also a new beginning

Twenty-five years after the creation of the multi-confessional retreat, the new installation by the founder of Cittadellarte represents a further development of the path initiated by the Institut Paoli-Calmettes. The project updates and strengthens a vision that integrates medical care with attention to the spiritual and symbolic dimensions experienced by patients and their families, confirming the institute's commitment to a more comprehensive approach to healthcare.