| video
|
The sculpture explores the theme of manual grasping. The installation focuses on the main three types of grip: the spherical grip for grasping and holding round objects; the hooked grip with flexed fingers, enabling pulling and the cylindrical grip to hold cylindrical objects. The eight-meter tall installation is composed of twelve double-sided monitors attached to three metal rods. In movement, the three rods swing around a central axis like a pendulum, enabling the monitors to partially overlap.
A choreography of three chapters every one dedicated to a type of grip is shown in a permanent loop. in the chapter about the cylindric grip hands grip around the rods, pull them and set the pendulums in motion until a complex status of movement has been reached. In the chapter about the spherical grip balls are thrown between the monitors and by hitting their frame the movement of the monitors is triggert. In the chapter about hooked grip handles appear in the monitor. the virtual hands pull the handles and the monitors showing colors and start swinging again. When overlapping they then creating a chromatic choreography by additive mixture of color.
Technically, the kinetic sculpture is based on real-time control of the motors. The system registers the virtual hand movements on the screens and directly transposes these into real movements, synchronizing the image and the swinging of the pendulum. This principle also enables direct visitor engagement by moving their hands over a light-box.
The grasp pendulum is a kinetic sculpture combining virtual and real movements in a mutual dialogue inviting the audience to also become part of it.
The project was commissioned by "otto bock healthcare" and is shown at their headquarters in Berlin. The projects had been realized in conjunction with my friends and colleagues at art+com, the product and MKT.