S

‘s’ is a series of ceramic spinning tops, drawings on paper and wood reliefs, exploring kinetic potential and the vertigo phenomenon. This work questions the movement of elementary particles and celestial bodies through geometric shapes, coupled with theories on the balance between order and disorder.

​

According to French phenomenologist Henri Maldiney, the vertigo phenomenon is due to the change of scale between the micro- and macro-scale of our universe, which is felt through our attraction to the earth, gravity. Thus, the kinetic and the cosmic can be linked.

​

The title ‘s’, the first letter of the word ‘spin’, refers to the unit of entropy. These two terms, spin and entropy, allow us to link the macroscopic level of the universe to the microscopic level of elementary particles: entropy is a term from thermodynamics, the discipline of physics that deals with heat (from the Ancient Greek ‘thermos’) and force (from the Ancient Greek ‘dunamis’) and their relationship with energy. For the Greeks, the universe consisted of indivisible particles. The Ancient Greek word ‘atomos’ means indivisible. Time has taught us that atoms can be divided into even smaller particles. It is the interaction between these particles that underlies the creation and operation of our universe.

​

The motion studies show a double spiral composed of painted particles. The double spiral visualises the kinetic potential of the spinning tops and their equilibrium seeking behaviour. Each particle follows the path of one of the two spirals, whose shape evolves as the spinning tops change path. The drawings emphasise the logical and temporal nature of the spinning tops’ movement.

​

In this way, ‘s’ considers the movement of the smallest particles in the universe, the atoms, as well as the movement of the largest, the celestial bodies. The shape of the spinning tops is based on a rotation of the axis of the elementary geometries square, triangle and circle. In this way, ‘s’ also provides a framework for research into the logical control of a design process to achieve an objective aesthetic result.