Re-installing Koons: Part II …the refill
For the realization of the series Total Equilibrium (1985), months of chemical investigation were spent to reach the perfect balance between the elements that compose it. In a purely sculptural exercise, inside a water tank perfectly aligned with the ground—filled with a formula of sodium chloride and distilled water—basketballs float inside, some with half their circumference submerged, others completely immersed in the exact center of the tank. ― Javier Toscano
The one in our show has the basketballs completely immersed in the exact center of the tank. In order to actually maintain that equilibrium, this complex installation undergoes a refreshing process every six weeks―which takes several days to complete. First, the balls are removed and the tank gets drained. Then the tank is filled halfway with distilled water and 7.6 pounds of sodium chloride is mixed in. Once dissolved, the balls get placed back in and distilled water gets added through an IV drip process calling for a fill rate of 1 gallon per hour through a dispersed delivery method, until the entire tank is full.
Jeff Koons, Three Ball Total Equilibrium Tank (Two Spalding Shaq Attaq, One Spalding NBA Tip-Off), 1986. Part of the exhibition: Where Do We Go From Here? Selections from La Colección Jumex.
