Kris Lemsalu
When the Big Trees Were Kings
ceramics, metal, wool, fountain motors 2011
"I saw the image of an Islamic soldier in the media. He was sitting on a camel and waving a sword. The soldier did not interest me at all, but the camel did. I imagined that its reaction to having its humps slashed with a sword would be to run amok. Similarly to the extreme situations where people with their legs broken are able to run a few kilometres, fountains appear to replace the camel's humps that pump valuable water in and out. This is a continuing theme that haunts me, one I am trying to express: despite losses and shortcomings, strength exists that helps us keep living, a kind of perpetual motion machine or unbrokenness of the circle."