Micro-Macro Jump (Micro-Macro-Sprong)

About this artwork.

Micro-Macro Jump consists of two human figures made from red neon tubes connected by a pantograph: an instrument previously used to reproduce the outline of a flat figure at a larger or smaller scale.

The sculpture has been placed on the Duisenberg building, against a backdrop of concrete slabs, which makes the neon light all the brighter. This building – which is located in the Zernike complex – houses the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration. In 1998 the Faculty of Economics celebrated its 50th anniversary, which is why the artists Jos Steenmeijer and Trudi van den Berg drew their inspiration for this art commission from a theme in economics: J.M. Keynes’ “fallacy of composition”. This pertains to the understanding that macroeconomics, the behaviour of the entire economy, is something very different from microeconomics, the behaviour of individuals. In other words: the whole behaves very differently from the sum of its constituent parts.

To portray this theory, the artist duo made use of the pantograph. The artists manipulated the form of this instrument in such a way that the outcome is no longer predictable. In doing so, they want to show that the relationship between small and large is not as straightforward as one often thinks. In the piece, this is represented by the human figure: the magnification results in a significantly deformed figure.

Micro-Macro Jump is part of the sculpture project Kennisjaren 1994-2014 (Years of Knowledge 1994–2014) of the University of Groningen. This project was started in 1994 on the occasion of the 380th anniversary of the university and ended in 2014 on the occasion of its 400th anniversary.

Facts & Figures.

• Design
  Trudi van den Berg
  Jos Steenmeijer

• District
  Zernike

• Year of creation
  1999

• Art type
  Art in / on a building, Light artwork

• Material
  Neon light

• Dimensions
  h 24,00 x b 11,00 m