Clockwork Études 1-8 (2012)

We are all trapped by time, it is the one thing that we each have in common. It ticks by, seemingly more quickly with each advancing day, bringing with it despair as we anxiously let it pass.

Originally installed on 15 May 2012, Clockwork Études was inspired in part by Marcel Duchamp’s notion of ‘assisted readymades’ in which two or more found objects are joined to create a single piece. A music box is attached to each clock's minute hand, thus slowing the machine's tempo down to one beat per hour. Now, rather than melody, the listener is able to consider the timbre of each chime emitted and, occasionally, the relationships between études. The anticipation of such events enhances their appreciation and one is further drawn to the more subtle aspects of the environment whilst contemplating the significance of the passing time.