Die solide Wirklichkeit des Bedingten / The Solid Reality of the Conditional

The helicopter above the Berkel River in Vredener Stadtpark is not real, but rather a life-size model. Although the rotor blades are spinning slowly above it, this oak replica of the Bell Ranger 407 looks less high tech than the original because it’s made out of wood. Likewise, the helicopter isn’t motor-powered, but is instead driven by the nearby watermill. This underscores how the sculpture relates to its context: The surrounding historic buildings were also dismantled and rebuilt here in sight of the museum.
The helicopter model, a surreal foreign body in this environment, draws attention to the general character of the location. The sculpture – which seems to hover in the air like an oversized dragonfly – links time and space, nature and technology.

Additional information:
http://www.vreden.de/publish/viewfull.cfm?objectID=f26cc34a_20ed_76a6_2cc631f387e37d71
http://phaenomedia.org/Helikopter.htm

Further reading:
Skulptur-Biennale Münsterland, Latente Historie, Ed. by Kreis Borken, Borken 2005, pp. 113–119.