Perpetuum Mobile, 2007/25

Single-channel video

Perpetuum Mobile traces the dynamics of crowds—how individuals consolidating around a common cause form larger, more powerful masses, only to clash with others moving in opposition. Two groups gather, surge toward one another, and briefly touch before breaking apart. The cycle repeats.

The drawn figures—monochrome, minimal—move in waves: assembling, pressing forward, falling away. A frantic soundscape accompanies the image, layering the commotion of crowds, barking dogs, birds, train station announcements, screeching rails, and the relentless industrial churn of a factory.

There is no final arrival. Groups form and dissolve. Individuals leave, one by one. The work loops continuously, holding the viewer in a rhythm of tension and dispersal—where nothing lasts, but everything returns.

This work was featured in Mytych’s 2025 monographic exhibition at MOCAK – the Museum of Contemporary Art in Kraków.