Gustav Metzger's career has spanned sixty years of art and political activism. He pioneered Auto-Destructive art and famously held an 'art strike' between 1977-1980. He was also involved in the radical Fluxus movement.

"...this sculpture consists of five walls or screens, each about 30 feet in height and 40 feet long and 2 feet deep. They are arranged about 25 feet apart and staggered in plan. I envisage these in a central area..."

Around the same time, he was lecturing at Ealing Art College, where one of his students was rock musician Pete Townshend, who later cited Metzger's concepts as an influence for his famous guitar-smashing during performances of The Who. He has also influenced the self-eating computer virus works by the digital artist Joseph Nechvatal.