Turn Me On

It is an interactive installation artwork with a narrative film. This piece is an aluminum 3d printer that automatically attempts to print itself with air (no filament). Fetishism is “The habit humans have of endowing real or imagined objects or entities with self-contained, mysterious, and even magical powers to move and shape the world in distinctive ways”, according to David Harvey. The machine itself is not productive without the invisible labor and raw materials from the third world. The narrative film, tells a love story between this machine and its creator, also a homage to the famous French film Un homme et une femme by Claude Lelouch.

The artist is irresistibly drawn to machines, so much so that he is aware of its pitfalls and understand it's an illusion, yet he can't help myself. As Octave Mannoni once said, "I know very well, but nevertheless." He is hopelessly and helplessly in love with these mechanical marvels. The artist’s heart is set on creating a machine—a 3D printer, to be precise. This machine is meant to create more machines.

The 3d printer is intended to print more 3d printers. Yet, he asks for nothing in return. It won't produce anything tangible because he won't load it with filament. What it will create is the poetry of movement: the graceful dance of carriage blocks, the harmonious rotation of stepper motors, the symphony of its sounds, and the silent consumption of energy.

The process of the 3D printer working is what captivates my soul. It's not about the product, but the act of creation itself. Even if it serves no practical purpose, he yearns for it to function perfectly, to embody the essence of mechanical elegance. My love for this machine is pure and unconditional, blind to its utility. In this dance of mechanics and emotion, he is the creator, the artist, hopelessly enamored with the beauty of its operation. Love is blind, even when it is for a machine.