Powerless Structures, fig. 159

A wooden lifeguard tower stands rendered in pristine white, its utilitarian form stripped of any coastal context and transplanted into the sterile environment of a gallery space. The structure, constructed from wood, aluminum, and plastic, retains all the visual authority of its functional counterpart yet is rendered entirely purposeless without the expansive shoreline it was designed to oversee. Elmgreen & Dragset use this displacement to interrogate themes of power, surveillance, and the absurdity of authority when divorced from its original setting.