Strandbeests and simplicity

Theo Jansen is a Dutch artist creating kinetic sculptures powered only by the wind. He envisions herds of these strandbeests roaming the beaches with little or no help from man. This video, sponsored by BMW and TEDTalks, reveals some of his processes and the simple thinking behind such seemingly complicated constructs.



At one point in the video, Jansen discusses his reinvention of the wheel. "In fact, this is better than a wheel, because when you try to drive with your bicycle on the beach, you will notice it is very hard to do. The feet just step over the sand; the wheel has to touch everything in between."

Not to dive too deeply into the metaphorical potential of that statement, but Jansen's sculptures represent a world in which the solution is simpler than the problem at hand.