Graham Hudson, a British artist who specializes in large-scale constructions with interactive elements, has been noted for his investigation of time and social structure, assembling unique sculptures using everyday objects. And he was the creative mind of the Burberry project.
Hudson designed a robotic installation with the goal of exploring man-made idealism and horror.
His project called Sisyphus Reclined, this name was taken from the artwork that references the character of Sisyphus in Greek mythology, who was sentenced by Zeus for treason to an eternity of rolling a rock uphill and watching it roll down again.
It includes a Kuka brand robot with cutting-edge technology that is at the heart of the robotic installation, which carves 3D sculptures using a polystyrene block as the main material, reflecting existing figures, exploring concepts as diverse as the human body.
The piece is made up of a three-story scaffolding, the structure reaching almost to the vaulted ceiling of the store. The material was recovered from construction projects throughout the city. On the upper level of the structure there are cameras that take photographs of the visitors, which are then processed and sent to a robot on the ground floor that sculpts a block of polystyrene. Focusing on the shape of a headless, armless torso
The facility has eighty cameras that take 360-degree photos and vinyl record players that can be heard throughout the store.
Hudson worked for three months designing the blueprints in computer software (CAD), then came the hard work building the part that took three weeks including living there.
The artist explained. “It was a lot of engineering creativity: excavating old plans and going under the floor with torches, to connect with the original floor.”
As for the figure that the Kuka robot is milling is based on different concepts such as fiction, classicism, bodybuilding among others. the sculpture on display was already done, so the robot is outlining the figure itself, says Hudson.
This challenge was requested by Riccardo Tisci (creative director of the Burberry store) with the aim of reinventing the Burberry store on London’s Regent Street. Tisci was looking for a sculpture that will last in the Regent Street store for a limited time, representing the brand’s legacy and the building’s history as a theater and later as an art gallery.
This is an immersive art installation incorporating robotic technology that transforms the center of the store into a showroom, with the effect of seeing the realization of a sculptural work that combines sound and visual concepts.