While walking the dogs at the Pinnacle, as is my wont, this morning, I came across Canberra’s latest and most exciting venture into the public arts. Situated just off the track above the public lease which over looks William Hovell Drive, it is bold, confrontative and rather excellent. It consists of five stainless steel posts in an asymmetrical pattern. Each pole is roughly six feet tall, the height of an average man.
What are we to make of it?
The poles, being stainless, suggest perfection. They reflect, but also contain the scene, however as they are round they also distort our perception of the view, forcing us to reexamine our outlook of the area. They are artificial in an area of natural beauty, do they claim man is more capable of producing beauty than nature? They are incorruptible within an area of growth and decay. They display neither craft skill, nor workmanship, however they are an artifice. Their asymmetric placement contradicts fractal natural growth. They are the height of a man, neither overbearing, nor under-aspiring.
All in all, truly beautiful.
As the philosopher Wittgenstein once said; “Ich habe keine Ahnung, was hier vorgeht, geben Sie mir eine Pause. Ist diese Kram oder was?”
Loading ...
