Monday, August 28, 2023

Waiting for the Roller Coaster


This installation is called "Brake Run Helix" by EJ Hill. This is a "a rideable sculptural installation inspired by the form and function of roller coasters."  This device is built in the largest gallery at Mass MoCA.  There are some other structures in this gallery but this is the most interesting - a pink roller coaster track.  There were about 25 people seated and standing around waiting for the single green car to make a trip over the structure.  The rider was late but we all stayed out of curiosity.  So I walked all around looking for the best angle to photograph the structure when the rider in the car was going to ride by.  I found a really good spot, and then when it was time for the rider, they moved everyone out to where I am standing here, which is not the most photogenic view of the coaster, unfortunately.  


This view of the coaster would have been the best and this view is more interesting, but you can't stand here when the coaster is running. But you get a better idea of the structure here, and of course the sun shining through the windows leaving bright window shapes on the floor adds interest.  I have to report that when the young woman in the small green car took her ride, it was definitely anti-climatic.  The car didn't move all that fast and it was hard to see the rider from where we were all viewing.  Oh well...  The artist did say this about roller coasters: "For Hill, roller coasters are public monuments to the possibility of attaining joy—which, as he notes, is “a critical component of social equity."



 

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I will be interested to see the car on the pink track and to find out how it is propelled…Betsey