MILAN EXPO
Artist Wolfgang Buttress creates ‘simple, elegant and contextual sculptures which seek to celebrate a sense of place’
Wolfgang Buttress Artist
How was the idea for the UK Pavilion born? The form and idea originated from dreaming and a hand drawn sketch. I wanted to find a simple metaphor for the state of the planet in 2015. The bee can be seen as a sentinel for the health of the world. Pollination is essential to the wellbeing and feeding of the planet. I wanted to express something that’s universal, and that goes beyond language, age and intellect. The role of wider ecosystems in our food chain is very significant, but is often overlooked in favour of a more anthropocentric emphasis. Many people are aware that the honey bee is facing a crisis in recent years, I wanted to highlight the significance of this issue for food security. We got in touch with biophysicist Dr. Martin
CLAD mag 2015 ISSUE 2
The experience is immersive and emot ional . We wanted to connect the visi tor wi th nature and ecosystems on an experient ial level
Bencsik, who is doing some incredible research into the honey bee. By measuring vibrational signals he can interpret their language and communications, which is an amazing step in understanding their behaviour and more importantly how our behaviour affects bees. Our central idea was to use this technique to connect a real beehive in the UK to our pavilion in Milan. Digital signals from the bees are streamed in real-time and expressed to visitors through light and sound.
What is the aim of the pavilion? I wanted to create something reserved and conscious of its context, yet at the same time innovative and impactful. For me, the tension between those qualities is important.
How do you want the pavilion to make visitors feel? The experience is immersive and emotional. We wanted to connect the visitor with nature and ecosystems on an experiential level. An important strategy was to configure the site as a whole, with different places, routes and transitions. Within this, we aimed to provide multiplicity, so visitors can curate their own experience of the pavilion as an active participant. Use of the senses was also key. We’ve created something that will engage through sound, taste, touch, smell and sight.
How did you feel when you heard you’d won?
Excited and proud to be an artist representing the UK on such an enormous platform.
CLADGLOBAL.COM 121
PHOTO: BARNEY MELTON
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