A handshake is an everyday, rather formal and yet intimate gesture. Despite the fleetingness of its touch, it says a lot about its counterpart - it asserts security, betrays insecurity,...
A handshake is an everyday, rather formal and yet intimate gesture. Despite the fleetingness of its touch, it says a lot about its counterpart - it asserts security, betrays insecurity, allows empathy to be sensed, and reveals both closeness and distance. It is able to express and establish trust. The oversized ceramic handshake by Erik Andersen, hanging from the ceiling at waist height, appears firm and promises commitment. The two interlocking hands, which appear hollow on the inside, encourage viewers to insert their own hands into the openings on the left and right. The sculpture encourages people meeting by chance to greet each other personally - and superficially negates them, because the openings are not connected. It subverts expectations, irritates and negotiates boundaries and potentials of human communication.