Strange case of the melting house: Alex Chinneck's mind-bending buildings

Photos: Is that building supposed to do that?

Is that building supposed to do that? – British artist Alex Chinneck creates playful architectural illusions in highly visible spaces. A Pound of Flesh for 50p, a full-scale house made of wax bricks installed in Southwark, is one of his most recent projects.

Hide Caption

1 of 10

Photos: Is that building supposed to do that?

Is that building supposed to do that? – During its run, a team would come and heat the house each night to help the melting process along. "People go there every morning and night, going past it to and from work...so that provided a perfect opportunity for an artwork that offered transformation and a structural devolution."

Hide Caption

2 of 10

Photos: Is that building supposed to do that?

Is that building supposed to do that? – What does the name mean? Not much, really. "I just indulge in the opportunity to make something abstract in a process that's otherwise extremely planned," Chinneck says. "In long titles, if you integrate familiar language, it give them a pleasing familiarity and makes it easier on the mind and the tongue."