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Berlin intentions sphere, 2019 - Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin  – 2019 - Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019
Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin – 2019
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019 - Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin  – 2019 - Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019
Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin – 2019
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019 - Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin  – 2019 - Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019
Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin – 2019
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019 - Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin  – 2019 - Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019
Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin – 2019
Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019 - Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin  – 2019 - Photo: Jens Ziehe
Berlin intentions sphere, 2019
Studio Olafur Eliasson, Berlin – 2019
Photo: Jens Ziehe
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The work is created by two sets of steel spirals, one set within the other, that coil in opposite directions to form a two concentric spherical frameworks. Within the work’s hollow core is a bright LED lamp that shines out through the triangular panes of opaque black metal and transparent yellow glass that fill the space between the two spheres. The inner sphere is lined with triangular panes of Fresnel glass – a type of lens, formerly used in lighthouses, that dramatically amplifies the light at the core when it shines out through them. As viewers walk around the work it seems to respond to their movements: the light peeks out between or disappears behind the opaque black panels, is tinted or not by the yellow panes, and is amplified or not by the Fresnel glass, depending on the angle of view. In addition to this engagement with the viewer, the work also engages with its surroundings, onto which it casts a complex pattern of light and shadow.

Artwork details

Title

Berlin intentions sphere

Year

2019

Materials

Stainless Steel, coloured glass (yellow), fresnel glass, mirror, aluminium, paint (black), LED system, wire