Strandbeests are a new form of life. Sort of.
The name Strandbeests means “beach animals” in Dutch. The kinetic sculptures are so fluid, graceful, and lifelike in their movements that if you’ve never seen them before, you’d think they’re some sort of recently-discovered creature that just surfaced on our planet. Theo Jansen, the famous Dutch artist who creates them, even describes them as “a new species on Earth.”
Needless to say, they’re quite the work of art. The wind-powered machines blur the line between art and engineering — and they’re coming to Singapore’s ArtScience Museum on June 23 for Jansen’s first Southeast Asian exhibition.
Titled Wind Walkers: Theo Jansen’s Strandbeests, the showcase will be a major retrospective of the 70-year-old Dutch sculptor’s work over the past 28 years, featuring 13 large-scale gentle giants in the museum’s galleries — from the “fossils” of past beests to his most recent creations.
Besides catching a glimpse of their natural movements in real life, you’ll also get to spot the largest amongst those displayed — the “Animaris Siamesis”, which goes up to a length of 10m and weighs more than 240kg.
The larger-than-life skeletons were originally designed as a solution against the threat of flooding caused by rising sea levels, envisioned by the artist as creatures propelled by wind, meandering along beaches to push and pile sand on the shore to create natural barriers.
But since it’s been almost three decades, Jansen’s structures have obviously developed tremendously in form and function beyond his initial concept, from his very first model made out of PVC and wood in 1990.
Throughout the exhibition, you’ll see his original artworks, get hands-on at educational displays, browse through a collection of films, prints, sketches, and prototypes, and step into a studio recreation of Jansen’s workshop.
For a peek at the evolution of Strandbeests, watch the video below.
FIND IT:
June 23-Sept 30.
ArtScience Museum, 6 Bayfront Ave.
Daily 10am-7pm.
MRT: Bayfront
Adults $14-$17; seniors/students/children $10-$12.
