Retrograde

Turning the crank on this sculpture causes the cluster of mercury switches and light bulbs to rotate.

As each mercury switch makes contact, that bulb glows momentarily.

Every element was found — scrap yards, second-hand stores, dumpsters — then cleaned, stripped, sorted and rebuilt. Found aluminum is TIG-welded and sanded seamless; nothing is cast. The electronics are salvaged from consumer devices, repaired and rewired so the piece does something when you touch it.