Sven Sachsalber Literally Looks For A Needle In A Haystack As Part Of 24 Hour Performance

While, to most, the phrase “looking for a needle in a haystack” is merely a humdrum idiom, to performance artist Sven Sachsalber, it’s a challenge. That is why Sachsalber opted to devote 24 hours to handpicking his way through a pile of hay set in the Palais de Tokyo. The entire performance was documented as a video on a live feed, and–spoiler alert!–18 hours passed before the artist finally found the elusive bodkin.

While, as in the case of Looking for a Needle in the Haystack, Sachsalber tends to gravitate toward performance art, he also shows an inclination toward sculpture, film, and photography–a fact that is worth noting when considering this recent project. By placing an enormous haystack within the context of an art museum and filming himself interacting with it, the artist inadvertently transforms the mound into a piece that transcends traditional artistic description.

Galerie Rianne Groen describes his ourvre as “often funny, often serious and sometimes both,” and emphasizes that “his works have a universal poetic element that does not need much explanation.” And, with this literal, almost tongue-in-cheek interpretation of such a tried and true figure of speech, this statement undoubtedly holds true. (Via Hypebeast)