COPULUM (2022) (wood, variable dimensions, approx. 8′ L x 2′ H x 4′ W)
From the Latin cōpulāre, to bind or tie together, unite, join, couple; to connect.
![](http://ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/COPULUM_A_P1160764-2-1024x576.jpg)
The inherent embodiment of movement is a conundrum, sating the desire for representation, while producing a collectivity of gesture that pulls away from that very representation. Each pose infers and intimates through their activation, the sum of their actions causing a drawing back from literality to reveal something… beyond: a tangible, tactile, embodied abstraction.
Untouched, this form’s nature inclination is to lie inert, a tangled heap, brimming with potentiality. Without a guiding force, an anima, this corpus remains in stasis. However, once activated, the piece is capable of near infinite transformation. A continuously curious duet – until the spirit grows weary, leaving the Copulum to endure in its last gifted pose, a frozen monument to its last partner’s touch.
![](https://i2.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160675_ADJ_crop-1024x1024.jpg)
![](https://i2.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160720_ADJ-1024x769.jpg)
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![](https://i2.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160719_ADJ-1024x769.jpg)
![](https://i2.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160717_ADJ-1024x769.jpg)
![](https://i1.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160787_ADJ-1024x769.jpg)
![](https://i2.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160704_ADJ-769x1024.jpg)
![](https://i2.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160833_ADJ-769x1024.jpg)
![](https://i0.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160861_ADJ-769x1024.jpg)
![](https://i1.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160842_ADJ-769x1024.jpg)
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![](https://i1.wp.com/ckolsen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/P1160835_ADJ-1024x769.jpg)
(This activation occurred at the University of Illinois – Chicago on March 4th, 2022, featuring brilliant artist/performer Erin Palovick. Still images courtesy of Inseok Choi.)