The History Of The Kinetic Art Form

By James Nash


Kinetic is a mid 19th century word derived from the Greek word kinetikos. The word kinetic means relating to motion. Kinetic art is an art form that relies on motion and includes some number of moving parts to achieve an effect. The moving parts will normally work with the aid of a motor, the wind, or even the manual manipulation of the viewer. Generally speaking, kinetic art covers a wide array of styles and techniques.

Kinetic sculptures are three dimensional. Like all pieces of this form of art, these sculptures involve movement or have moving parts. The first recognized kinetic sculpture dates back to 1913. It was called the Bike Wheel. It was produced by the French artist Marcel Duchamp. He was widely known for his contributions to the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Kinetic art was later acknowledged as part of the Realist Manifesto including Constructivism in 1920.

What many people have referred to as the Golden Age of Kinetic art took place in the 1950's and 1960's. It was during this time period that artists such as George Rickey and Alexander Calder sharpened the craft.

Theo Jansen, a Dutch artist born in 1948, is best understood for kinetic art making use of the wind for motion. In 1990, Jansen started creating his so-called beach beasts, consisting for the most part of PVC plastic piping. As the name suggests, these sculptures were placed on beaches and they moved based on the activity of the wind. These virtually skeleton like art forms appear to almost walk as the piping flexes in tune with the blowing of the wind. A much more eerie aspect of these pieces are the stomachs. This almost human appendage includes plastic bottles that can really store the atmospheric pressure from wind. They then let it out when the air is calm, causing the statue to proceed on it's very own.

One of the more popular kinetic art wind sculptures is The Singing Ringing Tree in Lancashire, England.




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