Panamarenko

Aeromodeller

Background Story and Concept

Panamarenko was deeply fascinated by aviation, physics, and flight mechanics. He combined the fields of science and artistic poetry to design various imaginary transit machines. The Aeromodeller represents a shift toward a studied functionalism in his oeuvre, featuring dense manual construction, mathematical calculations, and meticulous planning.

Visual & Technical Elements

The Airship: The central focus is a large, elongated dirigible hull featuring a prominent red star and the hand-written name “ПАНАМА” (Panama) in Cyrillic letters across the center.

The Material Details: The notes on the graph paper document the artist’s real-world material plans. The full-scale balloon body was constructed from long, overlapping strips of flexible transparent polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film glued together.

The Gondola & Propulsion: Hanging underneath the blimp structure is a basket-like living space. In the full-scale construction, this was built as an actual “living room” crafted out of flexible reeds sprayed in reflective silver paint. The lines and points extending from the gondola to the hull map out the suspension rigging, propulsion motors, and steering mechanisms.

Medium: The piece is rendered with colored pencils, graphite, and ink over a grid background. It emphasizes the contrast between scientific engineering blueprints and artistic imagination.

Year

1972

Location

Offices Upstairs

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