(Kinetic Installation, Milton Keynes, 2020) tyvek, postcards, arduino, carbon rod, elastic, steel, hose, copper pipe, compressor
This piece is a surreal, slightly unnerving, rather preposterous, yet very pleasing experience. Like much of my work, it feels organic, primal, and quite alive, despite the mechanics being clearly visible, giving a sense of the uncanny. The droplets ‘puff out’ suddenly, like an angry puffer fish, then slowly deflate.
I’ve been working on this process using a compressor to create this kinetic piece that ‘puffs out’ cones for a couple of years now. The first version was used in my ITV logo, and this is the second prototype. It is fully outdoor friendly and ready to scale-up.
My vision is to create a large outdoor iteration of this work, with many low-hanging ‘droplets’ that expand randomly and suddenly, as people weave between then. (See video below for movement, and scroll down for further pics of prototype.) If you are a programmer or curator who would like to commission this finished work, please contact me. I especially think this would work well in the juxtaposition of a heritage location.
Although much of this piece for me was about RnDing the process, this iteration explores the nature of space, and of specific place. The title plays on pinpointing your locality in MK, but also asks where the ghost in this particular machine is.
It is part of quite large body of my work relating to space and social climate in Milton Keynes, almost entirely comprising interventions and pop-ups in public space.
The postcards which provide the bright interjections of colour reference my previous piece at MK Gallery, and are a familiar part of my sculptural vocabulary, hence the title for the show ‘Where Do You Live‘ and its place as part of my ongoing series of works about the new town of Milton Keynes.
