Burping on the bayou

Safely watching from behind branches. Wait for it. Wait…(Vimeo/Ruck/Robertson/City of Houston)

What’s lurking beneath the murky waters? Loud mouthy bass? Gargling gators? Sharknado after a six-pack of Lone Star?

Mystic, myth, or mirth. Hotly debated subject. But only those who dare, know the truth.

Been startling people since 1998. (From ancient times!)

With a little help from: air compressor, electronics, pipes, assorted stuff from Home Depot

And a giant red button on a brick wall.

No instructions. Not one word.

What is happening on Buffalo Bayou under the Preston Street Bridge?

Take a look – and hear from the one who created it:

Burps as art.

“The Big Bubble” installation by Dean Rusk really is a Happening by definition.

• Art that is temporary and can’t be placed in a museum. (√)
• Must involve the viewer (√)
• There was an element of chance with each viewer which means when it happens, it’s never exactly the same as the previous time it happened. (√)

Blurring the lines between art, nature, and ordinary life, this delight was selected from a national competition for Houston’s Sesquicentennial Park. (1986 celebration of the city’s 150 years)

Could it be a remnant from Atlantis bubbling up? (Dean Ruck’s Big Bubble/City of Houston/Robertson Vimeo)

How did the artist come up with the idea of Big Bubble and the bayou burp?

• He studied the Buffalo Bayou Master Plan which called for more aeration of bayou water during sluggish periods to improve water quality.
• So Bingo! The idea bubbled up.
• Schedule burps to occur automatically during the day, but also place a giant red button where anyone might see it, wonder about it, press it, and discover the bayou burps on command!

Artist’s statement:

“So, I liked that idea that it’s not a labeled or plaque piece of art. It’s just something that people discover. Obviously, there’s a certain ephemeral quality to it because it’s not always there to see. It happens occasionally. You have to be here at the right time to see it. It creates a certain mythology of its own by what’s going on there, what it’s for, what its function is, how it’s created. So I like that idea of it not being thought of or seen as a piece of art, but it just something in the bayou.”

 Hit the button, then wander a bit along Buffalo Bayou.

It’s a work in progress. Watch your step with all the recent flooding. The bayou is one of the major waterways channeling to the bay. It is some 30 feet from bayou to top of banks…and yes, it does fill up. The park is designed to flood.

So that’s how things are burping around here.

Fun bubbling over

Phil, the Philosopher Mouse of the Hedge

That old phrase: “What’s happening/whaz hap’nin’?” started here:

• “Performance Art 101: The Happening, Allan Kaprow”. From the Tate Museum.
• “Happenings Movement, Artists and Major Works”. From The Art Story
• And a bit of bubbly music: 1967 Supremes sing “The Happening” (also that movie’s opening song)

 

 

 

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