Kinetic sculptures by Anthony Howe

Kinetic art V last years is at the peak of popularity, because masters who have mastered light and movement manage to achieve a stunning effect - to overcome the static nature of sculpture. In our review - 8 most original examples as art objects come to life.

1.Fantastic mechanism from the artist Lime Young

Lime Young is a true virtuoso. The master manages to construct the most complex mechanisms from circuit boards, microprocessors, servos and other mechanical devices. When put into action, his kinetic sculptures have a magnetic effect on viewers, because it is simply impossible for the average person to solve the mystery of the mechanism.

2.Car silhouettes made from metal spheres

appeared several years ago, but still causes delight. 714 metal spheres fold into the shape of car models different years release.

3. Wing Flap by Bob Potts

70-year-old sculptor Bob Potts creates minimalist, but no less impressive works. His kinetic sculptures imitate the flapping of a bird's wings or the movement of an oar while rowing. It’s amazing how the master manages to convey the trajectory of movement so accurately.

4. "Dancing" sculptures by Anthony Howe

works with rough material – steel reinforcement, but creates surprisingly harmonious kinetic sculptures. In calm weather they look elegant and sophisticated, and with the first breath of wind they begin their fancy dance.

5. "Mechanical fish" from the art group ArtMechanicus

Through efforts art group ArtMechanicus more than one “mechanical fish” has been born. The collection of Moscow masters includes “Fish-House”, reminiscent of Noah’s Ark, “Fish-Knight”, personifying a lonely horseman, “Nut Fish”, symbolizing the desire for beauty, and “Fish-ram” - an allegory of the struggle between living and inanimate principles.

6. Wooden Wonders by David Roy

David Roy gives his own touching and tender names - “Fiesta”, “Summer Rain”, “Sun Dance”, “Serenade”, “Zephyr”. Wooden creations are set in motion by the wind and immediately become light and graceful.

7. Kinetic device that plays the violin. By Seth Goldstein

Seth Goldstein is a mechanical engineer who managed to create a device that can copy the movement of hands. The kinetic sculpture, equipped with drives, rotors, pulleys and computer chips, recognizes audio files played on an electronic keyboard and then plays a melody on the violin.

8.Giant animal sculptures by Theo Jansen

Theo Jansen creates giant miracle monsters that, obeying gusts of wind, come to life from plastic tubes, cable cord, nylon ropes and adhesive tape. And then he arranges fun beach walks for insect-like animals. Without a doubt, .

" received new article"". These are really interesting mechanisms, like living things. It is based on the laws of computer and natural evolution. The first sculptures were sailed. The last animals walk in the calm, sense water and obstacles, remember the path and even protect themselves from storms.

Theo Jansen's kinetic sculpture runs only on wind energy: there are no gasoline, diesel, electric, etc. engines. Energy for movement is stored in bottles. General overview about Theo Jansen's kinetic sculptures can be obtained from the video:

And if you like, we will consider more detailed design features further.

So, for starters, the operating principle of one stilted part.

These are the dimensions of the 11 leg components.

The legs, in turn, are attached to a kind of spine. Spine in in this case- a crankshaft that can either simply transmit motion, or be rotated using propellers, compressed air, and so on.

The best leg movement occurs when the foot describes something like a triangle with rounded vertices. The different proportions of the 11 components of the leg produce different geometric shapes when moving. The author of the sculptures experimented a lot, in particular with computer models, to find perfect ratio parts of the leg. This relationship can be presented somewhat more clearly with the help of the following video. It also gives a different interpretation of the appearance of the leg of the kinetic sculpture.

By the way, computer modeling did not give any special results due to the huge number of options geometric shapes, which the foot of the leg can describe. For example, each of the 11 leg components can have 10 length options. This results in more than a million variants of curves. The computer would work on them for hundreds of years. I had to turn to the method of computer evolution.

So, the computer selected 1,500 random variants of the lengths of the leg components. And he appreciated the geometric shapes that the foot of each leg describes:

Out of 1,500 options for geometric shapes, the 100 most optimal ones were selected. Accordingly, there were 100 types of combinations of different lengths of leg parts.

From these lengths of parts (the rest were eliminated), another 1500 leg options were randomly created. From these, 100 legs with the most optimal curves were selected. Based on the resulting lengths of the parts, new 1,500 leg options were created - and so on.

The cycle repeated itself day and night for many months. The final result is the leg of Animaris Currens Vulgaris, the first animal to walk independently on a beach. But this leg was not ideal either; the animal stopped periodically. So the evolution continued :)

Here is an example of a set of numbers that give a more or less moving leg:

a = 38, b = 41.5, c = 39.3, d = 40.1, e = 55.8, f = 39.4, g = 36.7, h = 65.7, i = 49, j = 50, k = 61.9, l=7.8, m= 15

Another calculation of the leg components, carried out in Matkada:

And here is another example of calculating the components of the legs:

Based on this calculation, a kinetic sculpture is also built:

In this video you can get a good look at sets of plastic bottles that are used to store wind energy:

The wind moves the sails on the crankshaft, the energy is transferred to the bicycle pump, which inflates the bottles. This takes several hours. But how can you make an animal move, and even automatically? This requires muscles. Muscles are a tube within a hollow tube, which can cause it to lengthen. Elongation is caused by the inflation of a rubber ball, which increases in volume and pushes the inserted pipe.

Some enthusiasts are trying to develop real vehicles based on them:

Well, the author himself believes that this type of movement is a revolution in the world of technology, comparable in importance to the invention of the wheel. The way these creatures move is based on the principle of the wheel (there is an axis that is always horizontal to the ground), but everything else is different. This is an advantage over a wheel, especially in hard-to-reach places such as sand.

An excellent example of a kinetic sculpture with a “hamster” engine:

Interview with Theo Jansen with Russian subtitles:

The main components of modern kinetic sculptures from Theo Jansen:

1. The stilted legs we talked about earlier.
2. Engines are also the windage of sculptures.
3. Batteries, they are also fan-shaped things on sculptures and plastic bottles into which air is pumped.
4. Signal transmission system - tubes transmitting compressed air and check valves with springs.
5. Obstacle and soil moisture monitoring system (if the probes encounter insurmountable obstacles, they turn the sculpture back).
6. Water sensing system (based on sucking water into bottles, increasing pressure and sending the animal back).
7. The animal's brain is a system of bottles, valves, tubes) working on a binary system. The brain counts steps from obstacle to obstacle. Therefore, when the animal reaches water, etc., and turns back, it knows how long to go back.
8. Storm protection system (hammer, which when strong wind drives the stakes on the nose of the sculpture into the ground).

There will be more in the future :)

These are the original living kinetic sculptures from Theo Jansen.

Kinetic sculpture is a special direction in contemporary art, based on the effect of movement of the entire art object or its individual elements. Masters working in this genre managed to destroy the myth that real sculptural images should be static. Their creations are filled with movement and life. They attract attention, fascinate and make a person think about the impermanence of all things and phenomena surrounding him in this world.

Sculptures by Limey Young

Lime Young - contemporary artist from South Korea who creates unusual sculptures the most complex forms using microprocessors, circuit boards, stainless steel parts and other materials unusual for works of art. Set in motion by special mechanisms, his installations resemble unimaginable living creatures and have a truly magical effect on viewers. Understand how they work to the common man not possible. But this is not necessary, because any kinetic sculpture by Young is created in order to amaze the audience.

Bob Potts creations

The famous American sculptor Bob Potts creates minimalist installations that imitate the flapping of bird wings, the movement of oars in a boat, etc. His sculptures are made of lightweight materials and are not burdened with unnecessary details, but this does not prevent them from bringing viewers into indescribable delight. Particularly impressive to art fans is the amazing accuracy with which Potts manages to recreate the trajectory of the objects on display.

Woo-Ram Cho and his works of art

The kinetic sculpture has completely captured the imagination of South Korean artist Woo-Ram Cho. All his works have complex designs and mechanisms. Made from various metals, they are supplemented with gearboxes, motors, various boards and microprocessors, thanks to which they are set in motion. The Korean's installations resemble strange birds, fish, insects and other creatures unknown to modern civilization. To make unusual sculptures look more realistic, the master demonstrates them accompanied by light and sound effects.

Moving compositions by Anthony Howe

American Anthony Howe has been creating three-dimensional abstract compositions from light stainless steel for more than 25 years, set in motion by the slightest breath of breeze. All the author’s creations consist of several dozen mobile elements and resemble unimaginable astronomical models or from the future. Some of Anthony Howe's kinetic sculptures stand firmly on the ground, but there are also some that are displayed in a suspended state. Driven by the power of the wind, they hypnotize those around them with their every second change in appearance.

Strange animals by Theo Jansen

Theo Jansen's kinetic sculptures convey the idea of ​​preserving life on the planet. They are made from plastic bottles and pipes, insulating tape, adhesive tape, nylon threads, cardboard and other available materials. Jansen gives his creations the appearance of huge, outlandish animals, which, according to him, feed on wind energy and can move independently. Despite their apparent lightness, they are able to remain stable even under strong gusts of wind. Before creating the next figure, the master uses a computer program to calculate the parameters of the model and only after that assembles it and places it on the beach located near his home in Holland. Today, a whole family of strange animals has gathered there, peacefully neighboring each other.

“Live” installations in Russia

Kinetic sculpture is popular not only in foreign countries. In Russia today there are many artists who are passionate about creating moving installations. Thus, through the efforts of members of the capital’s art group ArtMechanicus, a whole collection of wooden mechanical fish was created. Among their creations there is a House Fish, a Ram Fish, and a Knight Fish. In addition to Muscovites, Yalta resident Ivan Poddubny is also creating unusual sculptures. He makes miniature installations from wood and leather, driven by a spring motor. Poddubny’s works fit perfectly with modern interiors and are intended to decorate residential and office spaces.

Anthony Howe is a kinetic sculptor living in Eastsound, Washington. The sculptor works mainly with stainless steel. His sculptures come to life with every gust of wind, as if by magic, a fabulous, hypnotizing sight.

The video below shows best works Anthony Howe, it is noticeable that facial expressions change with a gust of wind and glimpses of light.

Anthony Howe is a typical city dweller, in whose biography you can find references to places like Manhattan or Seattle at every turn. And yet, it was he, who grew up in the concrete jungle, who managed to find mutual language with the forces of nature, making them allies in his work. Wind is the main component without which Hove's sculptures simply could not exist.

OCTO 3 . Stainless steel. 7.6 m high x 9.1 m wide x 9.1 m deep. 3200 kg. 16 connected blades rotating on a circular shaft. Withstands wind speeds of 90 mph. Provided various options night illumination. Sold to Dubai, UAE.

Even the lightest breeze can set dozens of rotating parts of the sculptures in motion. Howe says he takes great care to test his sculptures for wind resistance. One way is to mount the sculpture on your Ford F-150 and then drive it down the freeway.

About Face . Stainless steel, copper. 2.2 m high x 1.6 m wide x 1.5 m deep. 100 individually balanced copper panels.

Howe starts with digital modeling using software Rhinoceros 3D, then the steel elements of the sculptures are made using plasma cutting and assembled using traditional metal working techniques.

Octo

Olotron


In-Out Quotient

Vlast-O-

In Cloud Light

Kinetic Wind Sculpture

The creation of kinetic sculptures, that is, those that can move, as a direction in art arose not so long ago - in the mid-50s of the last century, and as an additional example, we can recall the works of Theo Jansen. However, unlike Jansen's plastic sculptures, Anthony works with metal, predominantly steel. Using steel reinforcement combined with forged curved forms and fiberglass-covered disks, Howe creates fantastic sculptures. In calm weather, they surprise with their elegance, and with the slightest breath of wind they begin to move, spinning in a dance that only they understand and creating an inexplicable secret harmony.

Anthony Howe has been creating kinetic sculptures for about 20 years. "I'm trying to create objects, appearance which will be associated with attributes science fiction just like with biological and astronomical models,” says the author.
The sculptor was born in 1954 in Salt Lake City (Utah, USA). Anthony Howe started his creative career as an artist and only after moving to New York moved from painting to sculpture. The author became widely known in the late 1990s.

Spine Tower

Modern artists and sculptors have long gone beyond the generally accepted concept of “ fine art" They became real inventors and as a result created a separate artistic direction, called “kinetic art”. Kineticism is based on a simple idea: under the influence of wind, light and movement, you can create a stunning artistic object that literally “comes to life” before the eyes of the audience. Our selection contains the most impressive examples of kinetic sculptures created by Sovriska figures.

THE INHABITANTS OF THE SANDY BEACHES BY THEO JANSEN

Dutch artist Theo Jansen creates truly unique art objects that are driven by gusts of wind. Fantastic creatures gigantic sizes roam freely around sandy beaches, which brings complete delight and amazement to the spellbound audience. These characters seem to have stepped out of the pages of post-apocalyptic novels and now live among people.

Back in the 90s, Jansen created computer program, with the help of which he was able to calculate the evolution of many creatures that were in the struggle for survival. Seriously fascinated by this matter, he decided to transfer his developments from the computer screen to real life. To create the giant inhabitants of the sandy coasts, the artist uses plastic tubes, which he buys for 10 cents per meter. Cable ties, tape, plastic bottles and nylon threads are used. The result is very light and inexpensive kinetic sculptures, vaguely reminiscent of bizarre insects, each of which contains an average of 375 tubes.

SPACE ART OBJECTS ANTHONY HOWE

Contemporary art closely interacts with information technology, and vivid proof of this is the work of the American sculptor Anthony Howe. It is with the help of a computer that the master has been creating autonomous kinetic sculptures for the past 17 years. Huge art objects react to such natural phenomena like light and wind.

The author of the “space” sculptures admits that he draws inspiration from astronomical and microbiological models. Howe primarily uses fiberglass and stainless steel in his work. The sculptor achieves three-dimensional harmony by creating symmetrical and asymmetrical balance between multiple axes. Looking at these unique creations it really seems that they were not created by man at all, but rather they came to us from outer space.

A TOUCHING LOVE STORY FROM Tamara KVESITADZE

Another stunning sculpture called “Man and Woman” is located in Batumi (Georgia). The author of this creation is Georgian sculptor Tamara Kvesitadze. Every evening at 19.00 an 8-meter steel composition begins to move, playing out a real love drama. The fact is that the sculpture depicts the Muslim Azerbaijani Ali and the Georgian princess Nino from famous novel, which was supposedly written by Kurban Said in 1937.

In the book, the action takes place in the Caucasus against the backdrop of the First World War. The novel “Ali and Nino” raises the most difficult questions related to the search for ways to reconcile Islam and Christianity, West and East, men and women. In the evening, at the most romantic time, the statues begin to move towards each other, unite in a touching embrace for a short time, and then part. The performance lasts only 10 minutes, but in this short period of time the sculpture manages to tell an incredible story. touching story love that leaves no spectator indifferent.

HYPNOTIC MECHANISMS OF BOB POTTS

Bob Potts is a painter and sculptor from San Francisco. He creates amazing kinetic sculptures that imitate smooth movements fish and insects, the flapping of bird wings, the movements of boat oars. In the process of working on his art objects, the artist uses a variety of parts: chains, levers, gears and connecting rods. It is with their help that he creates stunning minimalist sculptures, focused only on movement.

For his work, the sculptor (and also a professional carpenter) uses mainly stainless steel, brass, aluminum, copper, bronze and wood. To begin with, he creates a prototype of the future sculpture from wood, calculates the dimensions and geometric proportions. The master creates each of his creations slowly, carefully calculating every detail. Often the original is very different from its prototype.

MAGIC RAIN FROM ART+COM

The kinetic sculpture, located in the first terminal of Singapore's Changi Airport (by the way, has been repeatedly voted the best airport in the world), consists of 608 elements imitating raindrops that seem to be frozen in the air. Thanks to the operation of special motors built into the ceiling, the drops are set in motion every 15 minutes and demonstrate something like a rain dance - a truly impressive spectacle.

The art object was created by the Berlin company ART+COM. 

The drops are made of lightweight aluminum with a copper coating. A similar large-scale sculpture from ART+COM was presented at the Munich BMW Museum in 2008. It consisted of 714 metal spheres suspended on the thinnest steel wires 0.2 mm thick. The wires are almost impossible to see, so it feels like the “drops” are floating in the air. By the way, the ART+COM studio received the highest award for this work, the One Show Design Awards - the “Oscar” of the advertising industry.

BIOLOGICAL FORMS OF LIFE TSOYA URAM

Seoul-based artist Choi Uram creates interesting kinetic sculptures that mimic natural life forms. To produce his works, the master uses various types of metals, gearboxes, motors, as well as processors and circuit boards that set the sculptures in motion. Each exhibit is equipped with a very complex mechanism, and therefore, before exhibitions, Tsoi has to explain in detail to the organizers how to adjust the work of the sculpture if it suddenly loses its rhythm.

Over time, parts wear out to such an extent that the object becomes unusable. Then Tsoi dismantles the sculpture to use the remaining parts to create his new masterpiece.

At first glance, the works of the Chinese artist and sculptor Li Hongbo may seem ordinary and even mediocre, but once you touch the sculpture, classical art there won't be a trace left. What appeared to be a monolithic sculpture made of plaster or marble turns out to be a stack of sheets of paper. Tens of thousands of pages glued together in a special way, in their original form they look like ordinary statues. Metamorphoses begin if you pull part of the sculpture up or move it to the side.

Li uses an ancient method of gluing paper, which is widely used in China to make decorative items and children's toys. Lee found an original use case for this technology: a sculptor works with various types paper, gluing the sheets together along lines that form a pattern reminiscent of a honeycomb. Each creation by Li Hongbo is the fruit of painstaking handwork, which can last several months. For example, for a human-sized figure, the artist used about 20 thousand paper sheets.