Le Manège de Petit Pierre in La Fabuloserie Museum

In the little village of Dicy, France, a cow herder named Pierre Avezard, less formally known as “Petit Pierre,” built an array of mechanical constructions.

The focal point of his creations is a large merry-go-round in the middle of the metal madness. This carnival-esque attraction is fully functioning and carries little metal passengers in the forms of animals, people, buses, trains, and airplanes—all of which circle around wires and tracks at the turn of a switch. This entire construct is automated and controlled by signal boxes that Pierre had built himself.

What is most impressive is the dedication and lack of formal education that went into creating this project. Being a farmer for most of his life, Pierre spent little time in school and a lot of time working on his metal projects. He began working on this bizarre miniature wonderland in 1937 and did not finish until 1974. 

In 1982, the Manege was saved from destruction by Alain Bourbonnais, artist and collector, his wife, and some others, who disassembled, moved, and restored the structure in the garden of a place that a year later would become La Fabuloserie. The peculiar museum Bourbonnais opened to display his vast personal collection of outsider art is still open in the summer, offering Petit Pierre’s Manage a second life.