ReActor Balancing and Rotating House by Alex Schweder & Ward Shelley | Yellowtrace
Photo by © Richard Barnes.

ReActor Balancing and Rotating House by Alex Schweder & Ward Shelley | Yellowtrace
Photo by © Richard Barnes.

ReActor Balancing and Rotating House by Alex Schweder & Ward Shelley | Yellowtrace
Photo © Dora Somosi.

 

And just as I thought I’ve seen it all before, along comes a rotating home that’s balancing on a single concrete column. This, of course, is not a real home as such, although it’s very much designed to look and function like one. Called ReActor, this art installation is a a Schweder + Shelley collaboration, forming part of their experimental, performing art series of “social relationship architecture”. During the summer of 2016, the architect-artist duo lived in the rotating house in upstate New York for a total of five days. Why, you ask? Well, all in the name of art – that’s why.

The habitable 13m x 2.5m dwelling rotated 360-degrees balancing atop a 4.5m high concrete column.

The dwelling also tilted in response to Alex Schweder and Ward Shelley’s movement, outside forces and interior conditions. The rotations and see-saw like tilts made the intimate relationship between the architecture and inhabitants completely visible. Gives a whole new meaning to “If the house is rockin’…”

 

ReActor Balancing and Rotating House by Alex Schweder & Ward Shelley | Yellowtrace
Photo by © Richard Barnes.

ReActor Balancing and Rotating House by Alex Schweder & Ward Shelley | Yellowtrace
Photo by © Richard Barnes.

ReActor Balancing and Rotating House by Alex Schweder & Ward Shelley | Yellowtrace
Photo by © Richard Barnes.

 

For more than a decade, Alex Schweder and Ward Shelley have been practising a form of experimental architecture that explores the dance between the designed environment and its consequences. Since 2007, the duo has designed, built, and lived in (or on) structures in locations where the public are invited not only to witness but also to actively engage with the artists in direct dialogue about their practice—an activity that has coalesced into what they call “performance architecture.” Blurring the boundaries between art, architecture, design, and performance, the artists’ work poses questions about the nature of social space and the way architecture influences human behaviour.

Alex Schweder received a BA from the Pratt Institute School of Architecture, an MArch from Princeton University School of Architecture, and is completing a PhD through the Department of Architecture at the University of Cambridge, UK. Ward Shelley received a BFA from Eckard College and an MA from New York University.

 

 

[Images courtesy of Schweder + Shelley. Photography by Richard Barnes & Dora Somosi.]

 



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With a disarming blend of authority and approachability, Dana is a former refugee-turned-global design visionary. Through her multi-faceted work as a creative director, keynote speaker, editor, curator, interior designer and digital publisher, Dana empowers others to appreciate and engage with design in transformative ways, making the sometimes intimidating world of design accessible to everyone, regardless of their familiarity with the subject. Dana's been catapulted to the status of a stalwart global influencer, with recognition from industry heavyweights such as AD Germany, Vogue Living, Elle Décor Italia and Danish RUM Interiør Design, who have named as one of the Top True Global Influencers of the Design World and counted her among the most visionary female creatives on the planet. Her TEDx talk—"Design Can Change the Way You See the World"— will challenge and transform your understanding of design's omnipresent and profound influence. Through her vast experience in interiors, architecture and design, Dana challenges the prevailing rapid image culture, highlighting the importance of originality, sustainability, connecting with your values and learning to "see" design beyond the aesthetic.

8 Responses

  1. ReActor: a Tilting House That Shifts and Spins Based on its Inabitant’s Movements – Vidovic Art

    […] Schweder and Shelley have collaborated since 2007, focusing on “performance architecture,” a practice of designing, building, and living in structures for the purpose of public observation and dialogue.  Though the artists are currently residing in (presumably) more stable housing, the tilting house remained on view at Omi until August 2018. (via Yellowtrace) […]

    Reply
  3. ReActor: a Tilting House That Shifts and Spins Based on its Inhabitants’ Movements – jomaliaband.com

    […] Schweder and Shelley have collaborated since 2007, focusing on “performance architecture,” a practice of designing, building, and living in structures for the purpose of public observation and dialogue.  Though the artists are currently residing in (presumably) more stable housing, the tilting house remained on view at Omi until August 2018. (via Yellowtrace) […]

    Reply
  5. ReActor: a Tilting House That Shifts and Spins Based on its Inhabitants’ Movements » OSOM | Agency - 2018

    […] Schweder and Shelley have collaborated since 2007, focusing on “performance architecture,” a practice of designing, building, and living in structures for the purpose of public observation and dialogue.  Though the artists are currently residing in (presumably) more stable housing, the tilting house remained on view at Omi until August 2018. (via Yellowtrace) […]

    Reply
  7. ReActor: a Tilting House That Shifts and Spins Based on its Inabitant’s Movements – artreflector.com

    […] Schweder and Shelley have collaborated since 2007, focusing on “performance architecture,” a practice of designing, building, and living in structures for the purpose of public observation and dialogue.  Though the artists are currently residing in (presumably) more stable housing, the tilting house remained on view at Omi until August 2018. (via Yellowtrace) […]

    Reply

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