The art installation is a fine way of exploring new applications and technologies, dovetailing performance with design. Over the past few decades, the Swiss artist Zimoun has built a number of large-scale installations, often in close collaboration with architects and engineers. Best known for works that repurpose prosaic materials like cardboard and cotton in orderly patterns, the artist sets his constructions in motion with specially designed compact DC motors, the actions of which create esoteric noises.
Zimoun's latest project in Dottikon, Switzerland, was developed with the architect Hannes Zweifel, a longtime collaborator. Inside a vast 1950s storage tank once used to house the industrial solvent toluene, they rigged up a system of 329 tiny motors with wires connected to 329 cotton balls. The motors cause the balls to jiggle, twitch and bounce off the surface of the tank. The result is a hypnotic loop of noise reverberating around the white space.
The 13m tank stands on the edge of a chemical plant in town, its industrial exterior giving no hint to the activity - and cacophany - within. There are no official opening hours, though spectators are welcome during working hours.
The 13m tank stands on the edge of a chemical plant, its industrial exterior giving no hint to the activity within
Inside, he and architect Hannes Zweifel rigged up a system of 329 tiny motors with wires connected to 329 cotton balls
The motors cause the balls to jiggle, twitch and bounce off the surface of the tank. Watch the video to see the installation in full swing
The result is a hypnotic loop of noise reverberating around the white space
The friction between household material and industrial surface creates an esoteric noise
The materials are applied in orderly patterns that make visual sense of the cacophony
-
We gaze into our crystal ball to predict the tech hits (and misses) of 2026The shape of things to come: seven technologies that will define the year ahead, from robotics, AI, aviation and more
-
This documentary tells the story behind Louis Vuitton’s monumental Snakes and Ladders runway setThe new film offers a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse at how Pharrell Williams and Studio Mumbai conceived the 2,700 sq ft Snakes and Ladders board, which backdropped the house’s S/S 2026 menswear collection last June
-
This remarkable retreat at the foot of the Catskill Mountains was inspired by the silhouettes of oak leavesA New York City couple turned to Desai Chia Architecture to design them a thoughtful weekend home. What they didn't know is that they'd be starting a farm, too
-
Unseen works meet immersive showstoppers as Yayoi Kusama hits SwitzerlandAt the Fondation Beyeler in Basel, there are 300 works by Kusama to discover and it’s delightfully discombobulating
-
What to see at Switzerland’s art museums this autumn and winterWorld-class art, design and photography await at 11 Swiss museums. Take a video tour to peek inside, then plan your trip with our guide to the best exhibitions to see now and into 2026
-
Why are we so obsessed with ghosts? From the psychological to the gothic, a new exhibition finds outGhosts have terrified us for centuries. ‘Ghosts: Visualizing the Supernatural’ at Kunstmuseum Basel asks what is going on
-
12 things not to miss at Art Basel 2025Art Basel is bigger and better than ever. Avoid overwhelm, follow our definite what-to-see guide at this year's event (19-22 June)
-
Switzerland’s best art exhibitions to see in 2025Art fans, here’s your bucket list of the standout exhibitions to see in Switzerland in 2025, exploring compelling themes and diverse media
-
Out of office: what the Wallpaper* editors have been doing this weekA snowy Swiss Alpine sleepover, a design book fest in Milan, and a night with Steve Coogan in London – our editors' out-of-hours adventures this week
-
‘Happy birthday Louise Parker II’: enter the world of Roe EthridgeRoe Ethridge speaks of his concurrent Gagosian exhibitions, in Gstaad and London, touching on his fugue approach to photography, fridge doors, and his longstanding collaborator Louise Parker
-
What to see at Art Basel 2024, as the fair arrives at its hometownArt Basel 2024, the fair of all fairs, runs 13-16 June, with 285 international exhibitors and a long list of side shows and projects
