Former Daft Punk member Thomas Bangalter joins artist JR to transform the Pont Neuf

JR invited the ex-Daft Punk "to imagine the sound dimension of La Caverne, the ambitious project intended to pay homage to the wrapping of the Pont Neuf by creators Christo and Jeanne-Claude 40 years later.

From June 6 to 28, the oldest bridge in Paris will be covered over 120m in length and 20m in width with sharp-edged rocks, where only the shape of its arches will allow its structure to be recognized.

The Cave will then be accessible free of charge, 24 hours a day and seven days a week, specifies the joint statement from JR, the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation, the City of Paris and the Amicale des ponts de la capitale.

As an "acoustic artist", Thomas Bangalter planned to "wrap it in a unique fabric, which would be sonorous without being music".

JR and Thomas Bangalter have already collaborated on several occasions, at the Opéra Garnier and in a Parisian gallery.

In total, some 800 people are involved in the project, which is entirely privately funded, according to the press release. This includes Snap's AR Studio Paris, specializing in augmented reality, which is "designing a series of interactive experiences".

Full-scale tests of the immense structure are currently being carried out in a hangar at Orly airport.

In recent decades, Paris has hosted several spectacular contemporary art projects, such as the wrapping of the Arc de Triomphe in 2021, a posthumous work by Christo and Jeanne-Claude. "Paris is a city that knows how to welcome the monumental. We saw that with the Olympic Games," JR told AFP in 2025.