partanen constructive concrete - art landart project by jo niemeyer

jo niemeyer

20 steps around the globe...

position: 68°40'12"N 21°36'06"E zwischen erster und zweiter säule ist ein abstand von nur 45 cm...

the first steps in the arctic north of europe...

camp in norway...

20 steps around the globe - a land-art project by jo niemeyer in form of an installation of 20 elements (steel columns) around the globe. at precisely calculated locations in different countries and continents. strictly organised on a route of the earth's cir cumference, which is systematically and exactly divided and proportioned according to »golden section« in 20 steps.

the concept : above are printed five dots. the distance from the first to the second dot is exactly 0,974 cm. the series is gro wing up in a logarithmic, mathematical progression. each point is related to one another. keeping this scale constant and in the same size - in only further 20 steps (twenty!), this series riches a distance of ex actly 40023 km and takes us once around the earth, in order to return to the starting point. »the golden section« is the key of this project. a mathematical formula (½V5-1 = 0,6180339), known to man as the essence of harmony and beauty and as a measure for harmonically proportions in art and nature not only since the great classical periods in egypt or greece. the golden section divides more than artist's canvasses or ancient archi tectural elevations. it is ageless, almost magical creative genius, that seems to pervade life itself. from science, religion, biology, physics, astronomy - to our planet itself.

the route: starting point is in ropinsalmi in finnish lapland near the border to sweden and north of the arctic circle (the first co lumn does not only pierces the earth at this point, but the cell of life or for instance the smallest atom in it's ground state which can be divided further - microcosms). the route continues further in an angle of 74.54° in north-easterly direction with 10 steps, which man could see with his own eyes and possibly point 11. point 12 is situated on the finnish side. point 13 and 14 in the kautokeino district of lapland/ norway. point 15 is located in russia, near pitkajarvi on the mountain shuort. point 16 re aches the barents sea. point 17 the area southwest of the town noryj urengoj/ siberia/russia. point 18 baotou/inner-mongolia/ china, very close to the great wall. point 19 reaches the southern part of australia, 60 km south of melbourne. further over the antarctica, where the first and the last steps fuse, (birth and death become one), over south-america and lastly over sweden back to the starting point 20 in ropinsalmi in finland. the journey is complete. (a indication of a limitless universe - macrocosms)

a mythological journey that is both, an adventure and an in terdisciplinary expedition into the secrets of the power of limits, and how it impact us from every facet of art, philosophy, sci ence and nature. behaviourism, evolution and life. an area that has been largely disregarded in recent years because its con tents are intangible. it is therefore natural and necessary that this principle should be experienced and made accessible and conceivable for modern man in an intercultural and interdiscipli narian land-art project.

eugen gomringer once posed the rhetorical question, "isn't it appropriate for concrete art to take on the task of reminding us of that proportionality which obtains in the world and here on earth?" this is exactly what jo niemeyer is trying to do - with the superior elegance of sheer simplicity.

documentation/references:
»20 punkte« by ulrich grevsmühl and eugen gomringer
text in german and english, colour graphics, b/w photo-
graphs, drawings and plans. 21x21, 84 p.
published 1993 by: edition partanen

film "20 steps" documentation 1997 VHS original: digital dv informations edition partanen birkenweg 6 d-79857 schluchsee germany fon 00 49 7656-1409 fax 00 49 7656-1259 e-mail jo@niemeyer.com

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copyright © 1997 edition partanen

jo niemeyer	20 steps around the globe...

position: 68°40'12"N 21°36'06"E zwischen erster und zweiter säule ist ein abstand von nur 45 cm... the first steps in the arctic north of europe... camp in norway...	20 steps around the globe - a land-art project by jo niemeyer in form of an installation of 20 elements (steel columns) around the globe. at precisely calculated locations in different countries and continents. strictly organised on a route of the earth's cir cumference, which is systematically and exactly divided and proportioned according to »golden section« in 20 steps. *the concept :* above are printed five dots. the distance from the first to the second dot is exactly 0,974 cm. the series is gro wing up in a logarithmic, mathematical progression. each point is related to one another. keeping this scale constant and in the same size - in only further 20 steps (twenty!), this series riches a distance of ex actly 40023 km and takes us once around the earth, in order to return to the starting point. »the golden section« is the key of this project. a mathematical formula (½V5-1 = 0,6180339), known to man as the essence of harmony and beauty and as a measure for harmonically proportions in art and nature not only since the great classical periods in egypt or greece. the golden section divides more than artist's canvasses or ancient archi tectural elevations. it is ageless, almost magical creative genius, that seems to pervade life itself. from science, religion, biology, physics, astronomy - to our planet itself. *the route:* starting point is in ropinsalmi in finnish lapland near the border to sweden and north of the arctic circle (the first co lumn does not only pierces the earth at this point, but the cell of life or for instance the smallest atom in it's ground state which can be divided further - microcosms). the route continues further in an angle of 74.54° in north-easterly direction with 10 steps, which man could see with his own eyes and possibly point 11. point 12 is situated on the finnish side. point 13 and 14 in the kautokeino district of lapland/ norway. point 15 is located in russia, near pitkajarvi on the mountain shuort. point 16 re aches the barents sea. point 17 the area southwest of the town noryj urengoj/ siberia/russia. point 18 baotou/inner-mongolia/ china, very close to the great wall. point 19 reaches the southern part of australia, 60 km south of melbourne. further over the antarctica, where the first and the last steps fuse, (birth and death become one), over south-america and lastly over sweden back to the starting point 20 in ropinsalmi in finland. the journey is complete. (a indication of a limitless universe - macrocosms) *a mythological journey* that is both, an adventure and an in terdisciplinary expedition into the secrets of the power of limits, and how it impact us from every facet of art, philosophy, sci ence and nature. behaviourism, evolution and life. an area that has been largely disregarded in recent years because its con tents are intangible. it is therefore natural and necessary that this principle should be experienced and made accessible and conceivable for modern man in an intercultural and interdiscipli narian land-art project. eugen gomringer once posed the rhetorical question, "isn't it appropriate for concrete art to take on the task of reminding us of that proportionality which obtains in the world and here on earth?" this is exactly what jo niemeyer is trying to do - with the superior elegance of sheer simplicity. documentation/references: »20 punkte« by ulrich grevsmühl and eugen gomringer text in german and english, colour graphics, b/w photo- graphs, drawings and plans. 21x21, 84 p. published 1993 by: edition partanen film "20 steps" documentation 1997 VHS original: digital dv informations edition partanen birkenweg 6 d-79857 schluchsee germany fon 00 49 7656-1409 fax 00 49 7656-1259 e-mail jo@niemeyer.com
return	more photographs copyright © 1997 edition partanen