If you’ve ever wished you could watch a wrecking ball go wild inside a convenience store, here’s your chance. A crowd gathered outside the former 4949 C-store at the corner of Bissonnet and Shepherd over the weekend to watch artist Trey Duvall’s kinetic demolition installation in action. The installation features wrecking balls connected to computer-controlled motors mounted on the ceiling wreaking havoc on what remains of the interior. Or, as Duvall puts it, “Two high-torque mechanized double pendulums . . . impact shelving systems, soda machines, retail racks, drink coolers, and walls to create an evolving and unpredictable landscape of detritus.“
If you can’t stop by for your own personal evening viewing of any portion of the 15-day-long endeavor (it’ll be in action through October 6), there’ll be live-streamed video of the action available online. You can watch nightly from 6 to 9 pm from a link on the project website.
This video by Duvall shows some of the first blows:
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Construction on a 3-story mixed-use development on the site at 2132 Bissonnet St. is scheduled to begin in November.
- Moving Right Along [Trey Duvall]
- Previously on Swamplot: Boulevard Oaks’s 4949 To Be 86’d by Gringo’s Mexican Kitchen’s Owner
Video: Trey Duvall. Photos: The Platform Group
i mean, i know this a strong statement, but this may be the dumbest thing i have ever seen. what a time to be alive.
Looks like the device is designed to be massively clumsy and inefficient in order to make the spectacle last. Not very compelling, but of course I’m just a philistine.
Seriously?
I pray that this is just an elaborate tax avoidance scam, like donating the old building you were going to tear down anyway to the fire department to burn in a training exercise. But I fear someone might actually think this is art.
It would have been better if they gave residents of Canyon Gate 5 minutes each with a sledge hammer to let off some steam.
It will be way past October 6 for demolition to be complete if this is the method they are using.
For my next site specific installation I’ll post this stuff on Craigslist Free section. It’s still kinetic, but at a much quicker pace. Also no need for some random real estate company to bankroll the project. Bring your own tools, first come first serve.
What a lame display of destruction. That limp effort definitely showed the “artist” inability to truly design a weapon of destruction. It was cringe worthy just watching the display try to muster up one out of control swing only to bounce helplessly off of the cardboard it was trying to destroy.
Move over Picasso. You’ve met your match.