An overhead perspective of the work is provided in Figure 1 below.
Figure 1. "Oval with Pendulum" by Gabriel Orozco.
Source: Commonwealth, Tate Gallery 2003 at http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/commonwealth/.
As can be readily seen in Figure 1 above, this work is not a traditional piece by any means, but the artist clearly spared no expense in creating an elegant and sophisticated work that quickly catches the eye and invites further investigation and hands-on activity. In fact, perhaps the most appealing quality of this work and many of the others by Orozco is its accessibility and overwhelming sense of participating that it engenders in the viewer. Who could resist trying their hand at this graceful but apparently challenging "game" that does not appear to have any specific rules but does provide viewers with some concrete artistic boundaries in which to formulate their own. In this regard, Joselet points out that, "Oval with Pendulum is a game without rules but not without a specified playing field. The encounter it facilitates is therefore both restricted and open-ended. Conversely, in 'Until You Find Another Yellow Schwalbe,' it is the playing field that is fluid (the entire city of Berlin) and the rules that are dear (find another yellow Schwalbe)" (173).
While this type of sculpture may appear whimsical to many observers (and it is of course), there is another level of appreciation that can be discerned as well from Orozco's work. For example, according to Morgan (2003), "When struck with a cue this ball describes figures of eight, hitting two white balls whose kinetic configurations eloquently suggest everything from social relations and movements, to the circulation of commodities and material flux" (3). By taking ordinary objects and transforming them into unexpected shapes and designs, the sculpture has managed to make people reexamine their past conceptions about the world around them and view things in a different light. As Iversen...
Although the sculpture's works are not necessarily life-changing by any means, it is clear that Orozco's talents lend themselves well to the installation sculpture medium and the sculpture continues to evoke strong reactions from those who are fortunate enough to encounter his works today. By breaking the traditional mold of what is considered sculpture and even "art," Orozco has helped to redefine his medium into a modern and sophisticated one that takes ordinary objects and makes them unique. All in all, Orozco is in the vanguard of sculptors today who continue to redefine traditional views of art and make them their own, and if people are lucky enough to get in the way, that is okay too.
Works Cited
Biography: Gabriel Orozco." (2007). Art 21: PBS.org. [Online]. Available: http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/orozco/index.html.
Iversen, Margaret. (2004). "Readymade, Found Object Photograph." Art Journal 63(2): 44.
Joselit, David. (2000, September). "Gabriel Orozco." Artforum International 39(1): 17.
Lovejoy, Margot. Digital Currents: Art in the Electronic Age. New York: Routledge, 2004.
Mattick, Paul. Art & Its Time: Theories and Practices of Modern Aesthetics. New York: Routledge, 2003.
Morgan, M.G. (2003). "Turning the Tables." Tate Magazine, 8: 1-3. [Online]. Available: http://www.tate.org.uk/magazine/issue8/commonwealth.htm.
Werner, Michael S. (Ed.). Encyclopedia of Mexico: History, Society & Culture, Vol. 2. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1997.
