Art News, Ost. 1993, by JONATHAN TURNER
Rome
Eberhard Bosslet
SALA 1
There may be an international mania for installations, but Eberhard Bosslet is definitely a sculptor. His monumental pieces are freestanding, self-confident forms made from metal pipes, cast iron, truck tires, engineering equipment, and industrial hydraulic equipment. Even when a work is tailor-made to fit snugly in a specific site, the accent is on how the work functions as a commanding entity, rather than how the piece reacts to its given space.
Bosslet utilizes the effects of stress and pressure. Such massive works as Grundiagen (Foundations) and Mutual consist of heavy metal elements linked on the floor, but they contain no welds or locks. Instead they are held together by the conflicting forces created by high-strength rubber cushions, inflated to the hardness of concrete, pushing against steel straps wrapped around the squat forms. Focusing on high pressure at low altitude Bosslet presents a tense equilibrium.
Bypass I is a low-lying circuit of rubber hoses pumped full of compressed air, connected by outsize plumbing fittings. Meanwhile, Gegenstände (Objects) consists of a fully extended, metal roller-door wedged firmly in place between overinflated rubber cushions that the German artist has pressed against the opposite walls of an arch at Sala 1. Deflate the cushions and the sculpture is dismantled. Along with the basic metal structures, air is a solid substance integral to Bosslet‘s sculptures, maintaining a constant, if invisible presence.
Jonathan Turner
Rome
Eberhard Bosslet
SALA 1
There may be an international mania for installations, but Eberhard Bosslet is definitely a sculptor. His monumental pieces are freestanding, self-confident forms made from metal pipes, cast iron, truck tires, engineering equipment, and industrial hydraulic equipment. Even when a work is tailor-made to fit snugly in a specific site, the accent is on how the work functions as a commanding entity, rather than how the piece reacts to its given space.
Bosslet utilizes the effects of stress and pressure. Such massive works as Grundiagen (Foundations) and Mutual consist of heavy metal elements linked on the floor, but they contain no welds or locks. Instead they are held together by the conflicting forces created by high-strength rubber cushions, inflated to the hardness of concrete, pushing against steel straps wrapped around the squat forms. Focusing on high pressure at low altitude Bosslet presents a tense equilibrium.
Bypass I is a low-lying circuit of rubber hoses pumped full of compressed air, connected by outsize plumbing fittings. Meanwhile, Gegenstände (Objects) consists of a fully extended, metal roller-door wedged firmly in place between overinflated rubber cushions that the German artist has pressed against the opposite walls of an arch at Sala 1. Deflate the cushions and the sculpture is dismantled. Along with the basic metal structures, air is a solid substance integral to Bosslet‘s sculptures, maintaining a constant, if invisible presence.
Jonathan Turner
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