Visitors to the Venice Art Biennale – the world’s largest and oldest art festival – may be surprised by the installation art outside the Austrian pavilion this year.
Austrian artist Erwin Wurm, renowned for his unconventional sculptures and active art, has teamed up with Russian truck maker GAZ Group to produce a “truck observation tower”.
Apparently local truck makers were reluctant to cooperate but GAZ agreed and enthusiastically set to work on a 12-ton truck. The main challenge was to install a staircase leading up to an observation platform nearly 10 metres above the ground.
Visitors are invited to board the truck and view the Mediterranean Sea. The artist insists that the contrast between the limited space inside and the wide view outside will help us to appreciate the simultaneous constraint and freedom of our lives!
Venice Art Biennale, open until 26 November 2017.