Panamarenko

Magnetic fields (1979)

“Real space travel stands or falls with rocket technology, because that is the only principle that works in space. In my opinion, in order to boost up space travel again, we must look into the already existing interplanetary forces of the universe. One of these forces in particular seems extremely interesting to me: the magnetic fields."

In preparation for the construction of a large interstellar magnetic spaceship, Panamarenko started his search in the mid-1970s for energy sources that were powerful enough to get a flying saucer out of the atmosphere and beyond the reach of gravity. An experiment from 1979 that he calls "Magnetic Fields" shows that an electromagnetic drive offers the greatest chance of success. In 1979 he built a first test set-up on a wooden table with capacitors and copper coils. To get to know the functioning of magnetic fields and other interplanetary forces, he delves deeper into ufology and electromagnetism, which ultimately results in the project ‘Journey to the stars’. It’s the name for a variety of flying and floating dishes he designs. He gradually develops space theories and bundles them as ‘Toymodel of Space.
("Panamarenko Universum" M HKA, Antwerp 2014-15, exhibition catalogue p. 122)