Joseph Herscher is a multi-media artist born in New Zealand and working in New York who creates installations which are reminiscent of Heath Robinson inventions. These elaborate machines carry out very simple tasks but make use of involved and complica
Microclima, Joseph Herscher
The Greenhouse
Biennale Gardens, Venice
June 1 - 3
Joseph Herscher is a multi-media artist born in New Zealand and working in New York who creates installations which are reminiscent of Heath Robinson inventions. These elaborate machines carry out very simple tasks but make use of involved and complicated designs and processes.
He specializes in creating Rube Goldberg machines. Goldberg was an American cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer and inventor. He is best known for a series of popular cartoons depicting complex gadgets.
Herscher’s work has been viewed by millions of people worldwide, and featured in The New Yorker online, as well as numerous television and radio shows. He has led highly successful workshops in Brooklyn, Boston and New Zealand, and lectured at Parsons The New School For Design in New York.
La macchina botanica is the first work commissioned for Microclima, a new series of site-specific projects in the Greenhouse of Venice's Biennale Garden that use contemporary art as a means for exploring the connections among human beings and the natural world. La macchina botanica is a 12-metre-long Rube Goldberg machine comprising ten modular panels. Each panel will contain a set of interacting objects that trigger subsequent movements—such as rotating gardening forks that knock wooden balls—with the sequences of all ten panels connecting to form a continuous chain of motion. The final panel will consist of mechanisms forcing several pitchers to tip, one after another, to pour water over various plants.
The machine will be built over the course of six days, from 2pm to 6pm, at the rate of two panels per day. The construction will be overseen by Herscher, according to his design, with the help of forty local kids and two assistants / translators. The children will learn many techniques for working with everyday found items to produce whimsical, captivating, functional creations. There will be a strong emphasis on pacing, scale and repetition to form a clear narrative. On-the-spot problem solving will be encouraged. The final demonstration of the fully-functioning machine will take place in front of the Greenhouse on June 3 at 4pm.
Joseph Herscher’s project has been sponsored by the New Zealand arts foundation, The Chartwell Trust.
