Takis (2023)

A leading figure in the kinetic and sound art movements, Greek artist Panayiotis Vassilakis (1925-2019), known as Takis, incorporated invisible forces as a fourth dimension in his sculptures, paintings and sound works. Frequently employing electromechanical devices salvaged from military surplus stores, the artist explored new technologies in his practice, taking art into domains previously relegated to experimental physics. The volume's eponymous title ties to Takis' solo exhibitions at White Cube Bermondsey (2021) and White Cube Hong Kong (2020-21), which were organised in close collaboration with the artist's foundation and research centre. Illustrating many of the works in both shows, as well as the artist's ambitious public commissions, the monograph traverses the best-known series through which Takis broached the territories of art and science and embraced the unknown. An essay by Toby Kamps, titled 'Magnetic Brain' in reference to Takis' 1975 suspended sculptural work, delves into the personal experiences and challenges that motivated the artist into highlighting the unseen powers that animate all of creation. Additionally, curator Pavel Pys explores the cross-disciplinary exchanges and questions that informed the artist's investigation into the agency of the instrument and the spaces shared by humans and machines. Takis was born in Athens to a family affected by three consecutive wars. His perceptions of electrical and magnetic equipment, and alertness to the ineffable energies of the universe led to an unprecedented exercise in cybernetic thinking, where technological progress circles back to natural and cosmological forms.