alex chinneck unzips the walls of an abandoned office building

an architectural sculpture entitled ‘open to the public’ has appeared overnight in kent, england. a 1960s-era office building which had fallen to disuse has been unzipped by artist alex chinneck. the british artist, who had been working on this project in secret, has succeeded in elevating this forgotten structure to the status of a work of public art. by bending the walls and windows, the alex chinneck zipper sculpture defies conventional materiality, implying a new textile and opening up its interior to the elements.

image by marc wilmot

alex chinneck transforms the office building with two enormous zippers — while one vertically divides the building’s short elevation, a second horizontally traverses the roofline. the unusual marriage of scales introduces to the intervention an element of the surreal. speaking on his latest artwork, chinneck says, ‘I design playful public artworks for everyone to experience and enjoy, turning the everyday into the extraordinary.’

image by marc wilmot

‘open to the public’ is a temporary installation from thursday 2nd august. as the building will soon be demolished, visitors are encouraged to see it while they can.

image by marc wilmot

image by marc wilmot

image by marc wilmot

image by marc wilmot

image by marc wilmot

image by marc wilmot

image by charles emerson

image by marc wilmot

image by marc wilmot

image by charles emerson