An introduction to kinetic art

The term “kinetic art” derives from the Greek “kinetikos” which means “moving”. Kinetic art therefore involves elements that are in motion or are able to move, either from natural or mechanical forces. The term is also applied to works of art that gives the illusion of movement.

The use of movement allows the artist to create interesting patterns of light and shade that can be enhanced by incorporating mirrors and coloured lights to produce many unexpected effects. All sorts of materials can be used, assembled in simple or complex ways.

Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray

The first work of art to which the term can properly be applied was “Bicycle Wheel” (1913) by Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968). He mounted a wheel on a kitchen stool and called it a “distraction”. This work has since been lost, but Duchamp continued to experiment and subsequently produced a number of kinetic works, some of them in collaboration with Man Ray (1890-1977). In 1920, for example, they produced an optical device consisting of rotating disks painted with lines and driven by a motor.

Naum Gabo

Naum Gabo (1890-1977), a Russian-American sculptor, was another early experimenter in this medium. In 1919-20 he put together a mechanised sculpture consisting of a metal rod that could be vibrated by an electric motor and thus give the impression of wave motion. He later created sculptures that were designed to be suspended from a ceiling or other structure and thus rotate, so that the full view could be made by a viewer who stood still rather than having to move around the sculpture themselves.

Gabo produced works that demonstrated three kinds of kineticism: those in which movable parts must be manipulated, those in which a mechanical force is applied, and those in which movement depends on a work’s position, such as under a flow of water or in moving air. Several works by Gabo, both kinetic and static, are held by Tate Modern, London. These include his 1920 work “Standing Wave”. The photo above is of “Revolving Tension”, a fountain in front of St Thomas’s Hospital, London (across the river from the Houses of Parliament).

Alexander Calder and others

Kinetic art appealed to the Surrealists, such as Giacometti and Miro, who incorporated moving parts in some of their sculptures, but it was the American sculptor Alexander Calder (1889-1976) who emerged as the first specialist kinetic artist, making his first moving sculptures in Paris in 1931. His early works were hand-operated but he later incorporated motors that performed a limited range of movements, as well as producing suspended mobiles that were subject to random movements generated by air currents. He worked mainly with metal rods and cut shapes, often in strong colours.

The kinetic principle has been adopted by many modern artists, some of whom have made extensive use of technical developments such as fibre optics and electronics to produce startling and beautiful effects. Artists of note include Jean Tinguely, Pol Bury, Heinz Mack and Lynn Chadwick. Given the huge range of materials, technologies and concepts available to today’s artists, plus the public appeal of art that does unexpected things, the possibilities of kinetic art would appear to be endless.

© John Welford