Influenced by a Baudelaire poem Une Chargonne, this pile of raucous materiality (rabbit skin glue, fake fur, an inflating silicone bladder, organ pipes, salt, clay…) brings a particular Romantic edge to the conversation on material’s participation in culture. Baudelaire reminds us of the particular productivity of rot, of ruin, a vitality that is very different than human life yet impossible to ignore–a stinking swarming of something whole into a multitude.
This sculpture was envisioned as a part of a larger project, The Cultural History of Air, a network of sculptures that communicate to each other (and to us) through pneumatic circuitry. Below is a short video documenting my attempts to create a feedback loop between Vibrant Matter and my previous piece Pneuma. The movement of these pieces is achieved entirely through air (air piloted valves, etc.)
Andrew Barco 