carsten nicolai

pionier Ⅱ

2009
outdoor installation on piazza plebiscito, naples, italy
three large scale balloons moored wih metal cylinders on the piazza, internal 12 KW light sources, real-time sounds form the seismic activity of mount vesuvius
dimensions variable
pionier II

the work pionier Ⅱ has been especially designed and developed for the public space project on piazza plebiscito. a number of enlightened large-scale helium balloons hover above the piazza, fixed to large metal cylinders the ground via strong wire are free to sway in the wind. the scenery is completed by an underlying sound played through several loudspeakers installed throughout the piazza. it will be generated by a transfer of seismic movements caused by the volcano mount vesuvius. the installation occupies with the the interaction of artificial and natural elements – directly referring to the antagonism of the city and its natural environment – to express how difficult it is to achieve stable conditions and how easily a system might be undermined or contradicted.