Nikolay Polissky Creates Massive ‘Beaubourg’ Sculpture Using Traditional Basket Weaving Techniques

Russian artist <a href="http://www.polissky.ru/en/">Nikolay Polissky</a> is known for producing large-scale interactive sculptures that feature organic shapes and materials. His latest work, which is named Beaubourg after one of the oldest areas of Paris, was inspired by the architecture of Paris' <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centre_Georges_Pompidou">Centre Georges Pompidou</a> museum. The 22-meter-high sculpture looks like a cluster of horns or pipes, and it's made from birch sticks and twigs that have been fastened to a metal frame using traditional weaving methods. The towering sculpture is currently on display at the <a href="http://nikola-lenivets.com/index_eng.html">Nikola-Lenivets sculpture park</a> located in an artist community near Moscow.

In the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/land-art/">land art</a> tradition, <a href="http://www.polissky.ru/en/">Nikolay Polissky</a>'s massive Beaubourg sculpture is made from natural materials, and it provides a commentary on the intersection of nature and human culture.

Using traditional weaving techniques -- an almost lost art -- Polissky wove birch branches through a metal frame as if he were weaving a basket.

The sculpture is also interactive; it features a spiral staircase in the center, which leads to an observation deck at the top of the 72-foot-tall sculpture.

For his part, Polissky has avoided ascribing too much symbolism or meaning to the massive structure. “Think up a story yourself,” <a href="http://calvertjournal.com/articles/show/1219/myth-reality-nikolay-polissky-timeless-land-art">he told The Calvert Journal</a>, when asked about the story behind the sculpture. “The most important thing is the myth. Reality alone means nothing.”

The sculpture is partly inspired by the Pompidou Center for modern art in Paris, designed by Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers, which has a complex series of water and ventilation tubes fastened to the exterior of the building.

And like the Pompidou museum, the area surrounding the Beaubourg sculpture will host a variety of cultural activities, including music, street theater and other types of performance art.