New work of art opened on Ventspils promenade
Today, June 11, the latest work of art of the Ventspils Harbor Promenade, the Propeller "Human Power" (Cilvēciskais spēks), is officially unveiled, adding a viewing platform and the work by artist Kirils Panteļejevs based on a ship propeller found at the bottom of the sea to the impressive collection of buoys on the Ostas Street Promenade that was extended a few years ago.
From discovery to idea and execution
When Ventspils Freeport Authority diver Deniss Lapins pulled the propeller from 22 meters below the sea floor seven years ago, no one could have imagined how much more manpower would be needed to turn this 3.5 meter-long and almost three-ton heavy object into the kinetic artwork “Human Power”, a landmark of the Harbor Promenade.
The project was carried out by the City of Ventspils in collaboration with the sculptor Kirils Panteļejevs, the architectural firm SIA Balta istaba (architect Ilze Rukmane-Poča), the Ventspils Utilities Authority, the Freeport of Ventspils, and the Ventspils Museum.
"When thinking about this object, the first thing that seemed important to me was the attitude of people towards historical processes," says sculptor Kirils Panteļejevs. The sculptor's reflections led him to look for answers to the question - how much can one person do? In his sculpture, he uses this metaphor by having people use a reduction gear to turn the two-ton, 3.5-meter ship propeller.
Diver Deniss Lapins recalls: "The project, which involved pulling the propeller out of the sea bottom, was interesting and quite complicated. The ship was badly damaged and deep underwater. To extract the propeller, it had to be freed from the debris and the covering soil. Also, metal cutting had to be carried out underwater. It took about 23 hours to complete all the underwater work."
The Ventspils Museum, on the other hand, has looked into the history and discovered that the Ventspils propeller may have come from the German submarine supply ship Mosel. The ship was built in Boizenburg, Germany, by Franz Jürgen Lemm’s company that was founded in 1793 and which produced its first steel ship in 1895. The Mosel was launched in 1912 and was assigned to the German navy in 1936. It was sunk by a mine near Ventspils at the outbreak of the German-Soviet War on September 26, 1941.
The propeller itself, judging by the inscription "Atlas-Werke-Bremen A.B.", was manufactured in Bremen at the Atlas Werke factory, which was founded in 1902 but since 1911 had specialized in the manufacture of various ship's auxiliary machinery, including the production of ship propellers.
The propeller is made of bronze, has a diameter of 3.4 meters and weighs 2995 kilograms. It has been underwater for 74 years. The propeller was recovered from the water on September 17, 2015. More than 20 hours of work were carried out underwater to complete the job.
Encased in a rusted ship hull, the propeller will also serve as an educational object, as the crank mechanism can be seen working behind glass and everyone can see the human power that makes things work and beautiful ideas come true.
Andris Kausenieks, Director of the Ventspils Utilities Authority, says: "In order to find the best solution for the work of art, a design competition was organized, which was won by sculptor Kirils Panteļejevs. This year, two Panteļejevs brothers are creating sculptures to decorate Ventspils - Kirils has created the Propeller, while Gļebs is currently working on the "Lats" sculpture, which will be unveiled in August. The work of art Propeller "Human Power" has a steering wheel and programming to make the propeller turn slowly. On its own, it spins at one revolution per minute, but if someone stands on board the improvised ship, the speed increases."
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