Hans Theys

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    Hans Theys is a twentieth-century philosopher and art historian. He has written and designed dozens of books on the works of contemporary artists and published hundreds of essays, interviews and reviews in books, catalogues and magazines. All his publications are based on actual collaborations and conversations with artists.

    This platform was developed by Evi Bert (M HKA / Centrum Kunstarchieven Vlaanderen) in collaboration with the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp (Research group Archivolt), M HKA, Antwerp and Koen Van der Auwera. We also thank Idris Sevenans (HOR) and Marc Ruyters (Hart Magazine).

    Panamarenko

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    The Portuguese Man of War , 1990
    Panamarenko
    Object , 126 x 63 x 53 cm
    diving gear on a metal table, plexiglas, rubber neck ring, batteries, tape, air pump with pressure gauge, electrical cable and belt with lead

    'This was no simple matter!  First of all, there was way too much current.  You were just blown out from under!  And when you eventually got deep enough, then that helmet would ascend with a lot of power.  It literally pulled you with 22 kilos on your head, and that was nuts!  After a while the lower edge of the helmet was right under your nose instead of under your chin!  I hadn't foreseen that.' - Panamarenko

    Although Panamarenko had already made the Whale and Crocodiles in the 1960s (works that belonged to his silent objects), he did not create his first real device for use in the water until 1990. This sophisticated diving suit, which he
    called the Portuguese Man of War, is intended for walking over the gentle slopes of the seabed.
    The diving suit has a plastic dome helmet and a small cylinder pump, ten centimetres in diameter, to be worn on the back. The helmet is supplied with oxygen by a cylinder with a piston that goes up and down, a four-litre bladder that
    serves as an extra lung, and a flexible hose that floats on the water surface. Panamarenko tested the diving suit in 1990 in the Maldives, as we can see in the colour illustration that completes the installation.

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