Studio Olafur Eliasson's repost of Iwan Baan's Instagram video

Why Olafur Eliasson loves this Iwan Baan video

See how the architectural photographer found an accidental urban waterfall a little like the ones Olafur makes

Olafur Eliasson likes making waterfalls. For his 2008 public art installation, The New York Waterfalls, the Danish-Icelandic artist installed four huge artificial, tumbling water features around NYC - a work he reprised this summer at Versailles.

 

The New York Waterfalls (2008) by Olafur Eliasson
The New York Waterfalls (2008) by Olafur Eliasson

 

Olafur’s waterfalls are not romantic evocations of a natural landscape, but more a way of dwelling on time, space and perception, as the water tumbles from top to bottom of the falls. They are not beautifully crafted, but simply installed, leaving as little as possible between  the falling liquid and the viewer.

In fact, sometimes they don’t need to be installed at all. Take a look at this short Instagram video shot by acclaimed Dutch architectural photographer Iwan Baan. Baan was in Atlanta to photograph the city’s striking John Portman skyscrapers, when he caught sight of this dripping window cleaning platform. Baan posted his video online, and Eliasson reposted the “fantastic moment.”

 

 

Nice to see two great creatives, and Phaidon contributors, thinking alike. For more of Iwan Baan’s work get Shooting Space for more on Olafur get this artist’s book, another great edition in our Contemporary Artist Serie.