Swing/ Switching

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Swing, installation view, 2016. Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, St. Louis.
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Swing, detail.

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Switching, installation view, 2016. Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, St. Louis.

A Safe and Sound Structure

The four stoke process begins when the driver ignites the engine with a key in order to get the vehicle running. As the ring gear cycles in and out, it causes the flywheel to spin faster and faster with each turn. The mechanics begin to move, graciously sliding and pulling the pistons at the various joints, the four-stroke process begins. First, the intake stroke begins by the piston moving down into the cylinder drawing both air and fuel into the chamber. The second stroke causes the piston to rise, compressing both the air and gasoline. As the spark plug ignites this mixture in the third power stroke, the flywheel mechanisms push the piston back down with momentum as the hot gas expands and ignites. The piston once again pulls out in the final stroke of the process and exhausts the mixture. This cycle continues during the duration of the drive.