American artist Anthony Howe gives massive kinetic wind sculptures that resemble alien creatures movement by the breath of the wind. To develop his pieces, Howe begins first with 3D computer-aided designs which he then cuts out of metal with the help of a plasma cutter. He then completes his works using traditional metalwork techniques.
It’s not as easy as it looks, and his pieces take some time to be tested out, says Howe:
“You have to spend 10 or 15 years so they’ll hold together and look good. Intuitively, I have to guess what will happen if the wind gets really strong. I try to overbuild my work. The best way to test it is to bolt one of the sculptures to my Ford F-150 and drive down the freeway. You can put metal on a table and wind will knock it off. But if you want art to spin at one knot then it’s a bit harder.”
Howe is now working on what he calls “the largest kinetic wind sculpture in the world,” at 30 feet wide, 30 feet deep, and 25 feet high. “Octo 3” will debut at the arts festival Burning Man in 2014, and will require an 18-wheel truck to get it out into the desert. More over at Anthony Howe’s site.
ART SELECTRONIC 