Chandelier by Japanese artist Tatzu Nishi was a temporary off-site work which provided the finale for Ikon’s Eastside programme for 2007. This exciting new work consisted of several street lights that were conjoined, inverted and hoisted into the air by an industrial crane to create an oversized chandelier, illuminating the night sky in a cartoon-like gesture.
Nishi is renowned for his major architectural installations, playing with our sense of scale and position, to alter our perceptions of a familiar environment. Seeking to forge a connection between an individual and their surroundings, his typically witty works reconsider overlooked elements of urban design or public sculpture. Often involving the aesthetics of the construction site, Nishi’s projects literally embody processes of change, physically adjusting our relationship to common sights and locations that have become so well known to us, they are almost invisible. Forgotten detail is given a new prominence whilst that regarded as remote takes on fresh significance.
Chandelier was kindly supported by Carillion, Advantage West Midlands, Birmingham City Council, Business Link, the European Regional Development Fund, Numana, UNITE and The Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation.