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Artist: Viktor Lois
Size: varied from 9 feet to 20 feet with Weighs: varied from 1 ton to 12 tons
Material: Steel, mechanic, kinetic elements, powered by people
Year completed: between 1995-2000 (in Hungary)
The Body Builders series is Viktor Lois’s playful—and slightly mischievous—commentary on modern life. At first glance, these sculptures look like unusual exercise machines. In fact, they really are, they are fully functional as exercise machines. But unlike the machines in a gym, these also ask you to exercise your imagination.
There are 7 sculptures in this series, they are installed alongside the driveway from the hill to the entrance, Created in Hungary between 1995 and 2000, they are built entirely from recycled industrial materials, including automobile frames, washing machine drums, and machinery parts. Viktor transformed these forgotten objects into kinetic sculptures that move and come alive through human interaction.
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Each machine strengthens a different part of the body, but physical exercise is only half the experience. On the Flying Machine, for example, pulling the handles forward makes the two giant wings flap. For a moment, you are no longer simply exercising—you become a bird preparing for flight. Each wing weighs 150 lbs, and yet a common person could move it without giving strenuous effort.
Beneath the humor lies a question. We spend enormous time and energy trying to build stronger bodies, but how often do we exercise our imagination? Viktor believes that movement win sculpture could nourish both body and mind. In the Body Builders series, fitness becomes performance, recycled machines become art.