Escapement Experiment (2019)

Kinetic installation:
wood, monster plant, threads, brass, battery, mirror, hammer, copper wire, plastic; variable dimension

The Escapement Experiment (2019) involved attaching fine black threads to a monstera plant, creating a setup that required patience, embraced unpredictability, and carried a sense of danger. These threads were connected, via a pulley system, to various instruments associated with art and construction, including a set square, a colour wheel, and hammers suspended above mirrors. During the exhibition, the hammers fell, shattering the mirrors in a dramatic moment. However, it remains uncertain whether the plant's slow and deliberate movements caused the hammers to drop or if another factor was responsible, leaving the incident in mystery. The almost imperceptible movements of the monstera, which occurred over prolonged periods, created a form of automatic drawing that blended fragility with uncertainty. In Escapement Experiment No. 3, lines are drawn from nature’s unpredictable rhythms, evoking patience, danger, and enigma as central themes in the creative process. This could be understood as nature’s drawing or what the project calls a “plant drive.”

Credits:
Photo: Damjan Švarc
Arborist and Certified European Tree Worker: Erik Vidmar
Engineer: France Petač