WAVING CRABS - PANAMARENKO

About the artwork

The Swaying Crabs comprises a technical water ballet with a lot of poetry. It is based on a memory of a trip to the border area between Zambia and Zimbabwe, where Panamarenko saw the Victoria Falls in 1975. The set from 2011 consists of three floating islands, made from narrow bands of high-quality mirror stainless steel. Six colourful red crabs, made of stainless steel, sway in the wind from the islands with their open claws. The ensemble, kept afloat by large floating pontoons, is the largest work Panamarenko ever created.

About the artist

Panamarenko was born Henri van Herwegen in Belgium. Panamarenko is a pseudonym and a contraction of 'Pan American Airlines and Company'. Movement is his passion. His oeuvre consists of works that defy gravity, whether on land, on water or in the air. Besides being an artist, Panamarenko could best be described as a poetic visionary inventor/engineer. The combination of art and technology, coupled with his fascination with science and technology, runs like a thread throughout his work.