Chris Burden’s Metropolis ІІ
Introduction
Christopher (Chris) Burden is an American sculptor and performer. Burden is an artist basing his work on sculpturing, performing and installation art. He majored in the Bachelor of Arts in visual arts, architecture and physics at Pomona College and there after pursued his masters in fine arts at the University of California. Burden had started working in his performance art work by 1970s. His central ideology was the expression of an individual’s danger and pain in several aspects. The pieces presented were eye catching and controversial at the same time. His first mature works were characterized by the idea of just not objects to be seen, sold and hanged on the wall. Instead, his idea of essential, viable art was that which can address the issues concerning political, environmental, social and technological changes. Something peculiar with his performance arts was that he was the central figure in his works. For instance, his performance piece called “Shoot” was a representative of the pain and danger expressed during shooting. He was shot in his left arm by his assistant from a five meters distance. “Trans- fixed”, his other piece of performance art involved him laying facing upwards with his hands nailed on a Volkswagen beetle. Most of these works of art sounded and seemed controversial to many people in the past (Art Daily). However, with the evolution in technology and people getting the idea of the possibility in everything, Burden’s art started seeming real but insane at the same time. The “Doomed” is another danger piece involving Burden, lying motionlessly in a museum under a slanted piece of glass. Some of his performance arts were representative of the streets, for example, the operational B- Car was a lightweight four wheel drive that was able to travel at one hundred miles per hour achieving a hundred miles per gallon. He also reconstructed a mechanical television that first ever existed. Burden also became a professor at the University of California before resigning after one of his art pieces caused havoc in the school (Art Daily).
His later works around 1992 included a “fist of light” consisting of a kitchen size box that is sealed and has some metal halide lamps burning inside the metal box. The box could be cooled by an industrial conditioner. More of his art, at this time, were the ghost ship, urban light, the two minute airplane factory. Of recent interest, is his insane work on the kinetic sculpture called the metropolis ІІ. Burden is helped in his works of art by his wife who is a multi- media artist. His works are known to be inspirational and brings out wild feelings and emotions from the observers (Peter). Burden’s works of art shook the entire world and could never be forgotten among many people.
The kinetic sculpture, metropolis ІІ was finished in the year 2011, and it took Burden four years to build. Its installation was at LACMA in 2011 which saw many people coming to observe the magnificent, insane piece of art. The kinetic piece of work is a representation of a small city having numerous cars zooming. 1,100 toy cars zoom the artistic city with lighten buildings all- round the city. The art is modeled after a fast paced modern and busy city just like Los Angeles the home of the artist. The piece’s armature is constructed of steel beams enabling the formation of an electric grid intertwining an elaborate system of about eighteen road ways. The road ways include train tracks, a six lane freeways and other double lane drives. Hundreds of buildings surround the artistic city and the many toy cars speed through the roadways at about 240 scale miles per hour. The roadways are made of plastic material, and in an hour approximately a hundred thousand toy cars circulate through the kinetic sculpture. At the center, of the grids are three conveyor belts that are electrically powered and have studded magnet at intervals enabling their attraction. The magnets on the toy cars and the conveyor belts attract each other, thus, facilitating the movement of cars to the kinetic sculpture top part. The movement of cars up the sculpture is aided by the magnets in a manner preventing any contact between the car toys and the conveyor belts. At the sculpture top, release of the cars is achieved making their flow down the roadways instant and weaved in the sculpture. The ultimate result of this flow of cars in to the artistic city is a simulated rapid traffic with congestion in some roadways (Peter).
The Burden’s metropolis ІІ kinetic sculpture has received a lot of view and comments from all over the world. Different writers have represented the artistic work at LACMA in different perspectives making it have varying impacts on people’s thoughts. According to the Art Daily, the first art newspaper on the net, metropolis ІІ is more than just an imitation of life. The colorful representation of the roads, cars, trains and railways, buildings and lights in the artistic city portrays the prediction of the artist about the future life in the coming ten or so years. She intertwined numerous lane roadways and railways are unique and superior to the real existing highways available today. Burden’s architectural and artistic perspectives are marvelous, thus, making his art works eye catching and rare.
Rafael Rozer considers the metropolis kinetic sculpture a fantasy city which has no position in the museum but the toy store. Museum is a selective place with no joy unlike the toy store or shopping mall which has all the fun moments that the metropolis art brings in its observers. The work did not also seem like Chris Burden, who is known for emotional pieces of art. The metropolis ІІ is an inspirational piece that is mesmerizing in the eyes of observers. It brings out the true meaning of dreams and future expectation because; the kinetic sculpture is where most of the observers would like to live- a perfect city.
According to Peter Schjeldhal of open culture media, metropolis ІІ is a frenetic mini city which seems to be tame. He also finds the art work quite different from Burden’s previous works which involved a lot of body injuries, pains and emotions. The kinetic sculpture is challenging since the noise, and constant motions of the sculpture are well calculated. The calculation entails the spinning of at least one car off the tracks per hour which is exceptionally smart of the artist and unique in its own way. The mini- city looks surreal, but the stress and emotions felt while observing the sculpture is as familiar as the last rush hour one had in real life.
Art Log identifies the kinetic sculpture of metropolis ІІ by the familiar noise it produces. The swarms of multicolored pigmy cars on metal highways are a representative of the street one has left outside the museum. The speed the toy cars move at on the metal roadways is that any native Los Angeles resident can find alienating. The piece according to Art Log is a prediction of what to come in the future although it incorporates an already experienced piece of life. The first, almost similar piece, the metropolis І, was not as complex as the metropolis ІІ. The use of a human operator in the sculpture also gives it its real taste. Humans are fond of creating different things in the universe, and they are in control of them, making the sculpture a real human invention.
In accordance to John Pavlus of Co. Design, Burden has no interest whatsoever in the transport or urban planning industry. His passion is art, the kind that can make tangible changes to the lives of humans. Be it political, social, technological or environmental change, it does not matter. What he does not fancy is the selling of art work to be hanged on the walls.
The car toys assimilated in the sculpture are a reflection of the society. The model explains something momentous and which is in the twilight of going extinct. The mini- city shows the possibility of living a free life involving getting in to one’s car at whatever time and driving anywhere. Such days and times are numbered in real life, which is an actual good thing. The art portrays how fast and safe cars can be presented by the high scale speed limit the cars travel (Pavlus). Metropolis may seem an optimistic future vision in the culture of cars, but it does not mean that accidents do not occur.
The functioning and proper performance of the kinetic sculpture requires full time attendance of two assistants. One assistant stands at the center of the art monitoring the flow of toy cars while the other pace around the installation checking for traffic snarls. This prevents the spilling up of cars off the derail trains and roads. The traffic flows are controlled, and catastrophes are reduced by use of certain solutions in the design. The subtlest act as lane dividing medians on the roadways that remains vertical at points of curvature, but can taper in straightaways. This solution acts as a braking reason, for instance if cars enter a curve, the median walls touch with the rims of the car wheels. The friction produced between the rims and the median walls slows the cars down. At the straightaways, out of the curves, the Tapered medians and the wheel rims do not touch making the cars pick up speed once more. At the bottom of the sculpture, the magnets along the tracks hold the cars back up the slope like a roller coaster. From this position, they are released downwards to the pull of gravity. The toy cars are also not usual ones from the toy stores. They are particularly manufactured for the custom specifications in China (Pavlus). The piece of art can run for three days every week for the next ten years and it is not expected to wear out.
Conclusion
Chris Burden’s pieces of art are an inspiration and attraction to most people. Of considerable interest is the recent phenomenal metropolis ІІ which attracted millions of people. Something’s vital about Burden’s art works are the impacts they cause on the observers and the world at large. The art pieces are not just for sale and attractive display in places and houses. Rather, they are useful in the facilitation of change and aspiration in the minds of the people.
Works cited
Art Daily. LACMA Presents Chris Burden’s Kinetic Sculpture Modeled after A Fast- Paced Modern City. 2006. Web. 29 November 2012.
Available at:
<http://artdaily.org/index.asp>
Pavlus, John of Co, Design. How Chris Burden Created Metropolis ІІ, A Tiny City Where 1,100 Toy Cars Zoom. New York, Scientific American, 2012 Web. 29 November 2012.
Available at:
<http://www.fastcodesign.com/>
Peter, Schjeldhal. Open culture, the best free cultural & educational media on the web. Metropolis ІІ: Chris Burden’s Amazing, Frenetic Mini- City, 2011. Web. 29 November
2012.
Available at:
<http://www.openculture.com/2011/07/metropolis_ii_chris_burdens_amazing_frenetic_mi ni-city.html>
