ANDY WEBSTER
Materials: Salvaged highway message sign, Wooden support structure, Digital timer, Original lightbulbs, Electrical components. Dimensions: 400 cm × 300 cm × 300cm.
A salvaged freeway message sign mounted on a wooden support structure measuring 4 meters wide by 3 meters high, originally used to display messages to drivers on a Kansas highway, is connected to a digital timer that controls its illumination. The timer is programmed to activate the sign's existing lightbulbs at random intervals, illuminating them for precisely 11 seconds each time. These illumination events occur at unpredictable intervals that may range from several hours to just a few seconds apart.
The work reimagines Alighiero e Boetti's "Lampada Annuale," which consists of a single lightbulb programmed to illuminate once per year for 11 seconds. It was developed with the support of the Salina Arts Center, Salina, Kansas, USA.