“Your concept of happiness is our lucky command. Write it on the keyboard”. Visitors can write words and sentences up to 40 characters, which then are displayed clearly visible with the paws letter by letter as sliding text marquee. The user choreographs the Lucky Cats performance word-wise. Literally it is the “inscription” of an idea of happiness or a wish in the Lucky Cats‘ bodies by moving their paws forward and backward.
The Global Pursuit of Happiness, or: The Army of Luck contains 520 shiny golden XXL Lucky Cats made of plastics which are arranged in 40 rows and 13 columns on a ramp-like stand made of aluminum, each unit serve almost as a “pixel.” Each cat has a servomotor built in to control the paws move exactly in position and speed.
Today’s art piece titled The Global Pursuit of Happiness, or: The Army of Luck was created by German media artist Boris Petrovsky
He used the Maneki Neko (Lucky Cat, Money Cat), a common Japanese figurine believed to bring luck, attract customers and bring prosperity. As you might know, traditionally the Lucky Cat waves with the raised left paw while holding a historic coin with the right one.
In addition, “For users, the Lucky Cats become multiplied “avatars” in the world of chance and happiness. But the Lucky Cats are also able to perform spontaneously as well: they can show 25 different salutatory and signalizing gestures as well as mass movements like the Mexican Wave or an ecstatic hyperkinesis. Every displayed sentence triggers audio events – sound samples of mass or group events, like entertainment shows, political speeches, demonstrations, sport events, parades, accidents, etc. from the beginning of the last century until today. The sounds express auditorily different states of mind, like joy, euphoria, desire, fear, hate, aggression and resignation, astonishment, outrage, pain, panic, desperation and fanatical excitement. The sounds are played in random order and unpredictable combinations. Different contexts and changing settings are emerging.” Says the artist.
A gold, shiny, kitschy, thought-provoking piece I wish I had seen while it was on exhibition at The Art Karlsruhe Fair 2012 in Germany.
All images © Boris Petrovsky
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