Men eating, sleeping and working inside a giant hamster wheel - PHOTO+VIDEO

Ward Shelley, 63, and Alex Schweder, 43, have set up home inside a work titled ‘In Orbit’ – a circular residence that is installed with a bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom.The pair move from room to room by walking in opposite directions at a slow, measured pace, for safety reasons.Mr Shelley is living on the top of the wheel – located inside Williamsburg's The Boiler gallery - while Mr Schweder is living inside of its curve.The two zones’ furnishings have been set up in alignment, requiring both men to do the same activity at the same time - an experience that will no doubt strengthen their nearly ten-year friendship.The duo says that they will only leave the steel-and-wood structure in the case of a true emergency. At three stories high, the wheel is not only visually arresting in size, but also in color.Mr Shelley will wear a red jumpsuit throughout the duration of his performance, while Mr Schweder wears an orange one. Most of the furniture installed on the wheel is color-coded to match their ensembles.Their performance art piece is an interactive one. Both artists are eager to speak with gallery-goers and answer questions about their work, reports Gothamist.The wheel itself took four weeks to construct, enlisting Mr Schweder’s knowledge as a trained architect along the way (he is studying for a PhD in the subject at Cambridge University).Mr Shelley also had a few local engineer friends survey the wheel’s infrastructure to make sure that it was sustainable and safe.Mr Shelley and Mr Schweder met as fellows at the American Academy of Rome in 2005. The friends have worked together ever since, even becoming part of a small performance-based collective that includes four other artists.They have exhibited their work in more than 15 countries combined, and between them boast a lengthy list of accomplishments - including fellowships and lecture sessions at academic establishments including Harvard and Yale.Mr Shelley resides in New York, while Mr Schweder is currently based in Cambridge, England, where he expects to receive his PhD in 2015.The two artists will vacate their wheel on March 9; the structure will remain on view at The Boiler until April 5.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az