he Car project is a recent collaboration between Greg Kreisman and Julian Tavalin.
Tavalin and Kreisman are ex-patriate artists working in Beijing, China in the Cao Chang Di art district.
The Car Project is a life-size kinetic sculpture of a four-wheeled automobile. Far from being just a gallery piece or installation, the Car Project is an ongoing investigation of transportation and modern life in Beijing.
The sculpture itself is made from local materials and off the shelf Beijing transportation technology. Made from both the input and output of Chinese modernization, the Car Project combines discarded bicycles, tricycles, and other material scrapped from old buildings and hutongs, with stock steel. This combination forms the infrastructure of both modern Beijing, and the car itself.
The kinetic sculpture organically took its form through the synthesis of the artists' Western expectation of transportation and timeworn Beijing transportation solutions. The fourth wheel and original steering system stand as clear structural examples of this, by paying homage to old-fashioned Western cars, as well as incorporating unique Chinese vehicle design.
The kinetic sculpture is a hybrid that can be moved by human power or electric motor. This is an unmistakable reference to contemporary ideas about automobiles, personal transportation and ecology.
The form of the kinetic sculpture is a steel skeleton onto which a corresponding series of canvas skins is placed. The canvas stretchers are all tailored to the idiosyncratic angles formed by the steel skeleton. The canvas and stretchers flesh out the door and panels of the car-like sculpture.
Multiple car-skins have been produced. Some of the skins simply reflect the colors and images of Beijing. Others explore the modern driver's obsession with status, brands and wealth. As the skins are built on top of the canvas stretchers, they become two-dimensional wall elements when they are not on the sculpture itself.
The Car Project is not just an installation. It continues to be an investigation into transportation and car culture in Beijing, through interaction with the public.
The Car Project leaves the studio and interacts with the locals of Beijing. It is driven by the artists; often with a guest along for the ride. The artists film these excursions, capturing the reactions of the people they meet and encouraging them to share their comments, concerns and ideas. The recordings are compiled into a video history of the Car Project in Beijing.
The Car Project skins also provide an opportunity for collaboration with local and international artists. Kreisman and Tavalin will make a number of blank canvas-stretcher car skins and distribute them to participating artists. The artists are invited to make skins for the Car Project reflecting any themes related to personal transportation and its many components such as status, ecology, etc.
The Car Project is currently on display at Tavalin Kreisman Studio at 300 Cao Chang Di.
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