MARTIN BRIEF
The Game
walnut and maple, 12" x 12" x 12", 2017
walnut and maple, 12" x 12" x 12",
2017
The Game, was inspired by Yoko Ono’s White Chess Set, which required players to work cooperatively to reach a shared goal. The players using my set must work together but unlike Ono’s the result of not working together is not merely confusion but catastrophe. Balancing the board on the tip of a tetrahedron means that moving any individual piece will bring the whole set crashing down. However, if two opposing pieces are moved simultaneously in the same way, the set will remain balanced. This set changes the entire game. Aside from players having to synchronize their moves, no piece can be removed from the board without disrupting the balance. Any effort to “win” not only instantly ends the game but obliterates the field of play completely. Players must invent new outcomes and the strategies to achieve them. This piece was commissioned by the World Chess Hall of Fame for their exhibition, The Imagery of Chess.
