The Cuckoo Clock or Cuckoo-on-the-Clock – a new in-house story for you. Background: A cuckoo clock on the wall brings up all sorts of pleasant childhood associations: the Christmas tree,...
The Cuckoo Clock or Cuckoo-on-the-Clock – a new in-house story for you.
Background:
A cuckoo clock on the wall brings up all sorts of pleasant childhood associations: the Christmas tree, the warmth and comfort of grandma’s home, good old cartoons on TV. Remember how impatiently you waited for that special time to come when the wonderful bird would delight everyone with its charming
‘cuckoo-cuckoo’.
Key concept:
This clock is clearly of a wooden origin, carved out from a tree trunk while the hands look just like the leaves of that same tree. The focus is on the bird itself who comes from a far-away forest country to tell the time using her distinct voice, pointed and well-recognized in the woods but also familiar to a wider audience. We can easily imagine the ‘stage image’ she adopts: Cuckoo-on-the-Clock. The wood itself seems to have moved forward entering into your house – such is the artist’s idea behind the composition!
As a viewer lying comfortably on the bed in a snug little apartment, we can dream away about the time when our most cherished wish will come true. The clock striking the hours and the call of the prophetic bird remind us that life is fleeting, and we need to be quick in making that wish.
The cuckoo clock has a long history. Its popularity goes back to the middle of the eighteenth century but the origins of the mechanism are obscure and subject to many a legendary account. The first cuckoo clock was a musical instrument – an organ designed in 1650. Later, in 1669 Domenico Martinelli first suggested using the sound of that bird to give a ‘voice’ to the hours.
