Pop-Up Politics - interactive sculpture in the form of a life-sized telescope with moveable pop-up parts.

Interactive sculpture in the form of a life-size telescope with moveable pop-up parts

First exhibited at Chester Beatty Library Museum, Dublin Castle, Dublin, Ireland, October 21st 2004-15th January 2005.

‘Pop-Up Politics’ was funded by a grant for the Arts Humanities Research Board (now AHRC). The point of departure for this practice-based research is Gottlob Frege’s writing ‘On Sense and Reference’ published in 1892, in which he made use of the telescope to illustrate the relationship with the perceiver to that which is being perceived. Specifically he was interested in the ways in which the context for the act of perception determines meaning.

‘Pop-Up Politics’ is focused on the French Revolution as France is transformed from a monarchy to a republic. The telescope provides the viewer with a range of different future possible outcomes to the social transformation. It triggers a questioning of terms which appear fixed such as the negative connotations of monarchy and the positive associations of the Third Estate and democracy within the context of the French Revolution.

The exhibition ‘Pop-up-Politics’ was accompanied by a catalogue which carried text by Plessner and also by the theorist Angelina Giannarou who wrote an essay ‘Eyes Wide Open’ (ISBN: 0-9548074-0-5).

The exhibition was noted and reviewed by the media including ‘The Sunday Times’ and ‘The Irish Times’. Plessner was interviewed for RTE’s radio arts programme broadcast on 1st December 2004. ‘Pop Up Politics’ was also cited by Intute (web resources for social sciences):
http://www.intute.ac.uk/artsandhumanities/sgibin/search.pl?term1=French+revolution&limit=0

http://www.plesner.co.uk/popup.html