Gelitin
Die totale Osmose
49th Venice Biennale, Austrian Pavilion, Italy
Plateau Of Humankind, La Biennale di Venezia 2001
The title of the work means: the infiltration of molecules of Gelatin through walls, through tiny apertures and wide-open doors, into spaces, feelings and memories. The effects can be startling and hardly noticeable. It makes things visible that you never knew they were there, it makes people invisible, it arouses feelings and desires you never knew you had.
The whole Biennale is our showroom, but the back yard of the pavilion is our laboratory. We work according to the principle of just add water. What you can see in the picture is a channel of water from the canal which entered the pavilion through the back door and filtered out through the side entrance. Fresh water came over the wall and created a lake, which soon attracted plants, frogs, fish, turtles and streams of people tiptoeing through the mud and balancing on the duckboards. Small quantities of Gelatin stuck to some of the most elegant international footwear, have been walked through countless exhibitions, arrived at the flirtiest parties and slipped back into the slimiest canals.
Do not be surprised if people you know are not sure if they have seen it. Do not think they are crazy if they say they saw a living sloth in the Giardini. Do not ask us if we know exactly where it is now.
