The Bitumen Chicken project exploits material velocities and generative material characteristics during phase change.

Frustrated by his attempts to design a bio-morph structure through drawing and then building it through prototyping Michael sought a quicker and more effective process. At dinner he had chicken casserole with his wife and spent the rest of the night preparing the bones and tendons of the chicken skeleton for the bitumen experiment planned for the following day.

When dipped into hot bitumen, the theory of the experiment unfolded. Covering the skeleton in thick layers of bitumen the sculpture gained its structural integrity and form. This process exploits the material’s inherent flow characteristics and phase-changing properties; from a liquid state into a stable, but nevertheless soft, phase state. Once the dipping experiment was completed, Michael moulded the sculpture’s underside to cast a stand.

Materials
Chicken bones and tendons, bitumen, steel, zink alloy