Design for Living

An inter-active artwork situated over a small canal in a nature reserve in Holland. There are two sets of handles at each end of the work, and eight shovels in a spiral formation along the central axis spanning the canal. The work can be turned using the handles - the shovels, in turn, one after the other, dig into the water. By the time the last shovel on the axis has left the water, the first one enters again. It was difficult for the original inhabitants to squeeze a living out the this environment and could only do so by collective action. This machine should represent individuals working together to clear the canals.