Anssi Taulu

Hameenlina, Finland
Residency: March – April 2014

Project Description
During my residence period I created ”Side Effect”, which consists inner tubes from the wheels of baby carriages, children and adults bicycles, wheelchairs, vans, trailers, trucks, tractors and rollators. The inner tubes are fastened to each other with rubber straps and steel buckles, which makes the flexible structure. Installation continues from the floor up to the ceiling and creates  its own universe in the space.

The form of ”Side Effect” is similar to my former works, but the material is completely different. My previous works have been made of a renewable natural materials. The inner tubes are made of synthetic rubber, which is an oil-based material.

”Side Effect” is an interesting concept, it has number of different levels. Part of the impacts of our actions remain undetected, but some of them you can find in the environment. Inner tubes are normally out of sight, but they have a specific function in rotation. I like to have functional parts in my works. But whatever its purpose is, it remains unresolved and open.

For two months I created other ”Side Effect”s, including topographical maps of the South Pole from rubber sheets and plenty of material experiments. For a small period I was also a Visiting Artist of Buffalo State College and I attended the Spring Cast Iron Pour with students and professor Kenneth Payne.

Special thank you’s to:
Marty Welch from Welch's Bicycle & Ski Shop
Cobblestone Construction Company
Joel Grimaldi, Metalogix Design Fabrication
Sculpture Space Board of Directors
Kenneth Payne at Buffalo State College
 

About the Artist
Anssi Taulu lives and works in Hämeenlinna, Finland. He graduated from Kankaanpää Art School in 1994. Taulu has had major solo exhibitions at the Galleria Sculptor in Helsinki and GalleriaKONE in Hämeenlinna, Finland. He started the Wasp Factories Environmental Art Project in 2008. Wasp factories were built in 2008 in Jyväskylä, Lohja in 2009, Edinburgh in 2011, Hämeenlinna in 2011 and London in 2012. His work has also been in exhibitions in Germany, Sweden, Scotland, Norway, and Estonia. Taulu Is a member of the Association of Finnish Sculptors.