Mechanisms of Power – Arcangelo Sassolino
Untitled, 2006 – 2007
Steel and hydraulic system
Courtesy Galleria Continua and Galerie Rolando Anselmi
Six moveable parts of a grab shovel are being triggered and controlled individually by a hydraulic system working with oil pressure. The normally seamless movements are transformed into unpredictable patterns of opening and closing. In its vain attempts to grab the stone floor, the sculpture wanders through the room and leaves scratch marks.
For the duration of the exhibition, the building is shaken by the dull scratching noises and impacts that the movements of the 400 kg excavator claw constantly generate. The sculpture slowly creeps over the floor of the first floor, overturns and causes deep holes in the slate floor. The scratches can still be seen today and thus became part of the history of art of Frankfurter Kunstverein.
