C5-537 Stacked and Wedged No.2 by Peter Burke is a collage that continues the artist’s investigation into precarious industrial assemblies and the expressive potential of structural imbalance. Within Burke’s wider practice, these works explore how fragments of industrial material can be reconfigured into provisional systems that hover between construction, instability, and psychological suggestion. The composition is built from four main steel and collage components, arranged in a stacked formation that suggests both vertical construction and imminent instability. Rather than achieving a sense of fixed architecture, the elements appear temporarily held in place, as if the structure could shift or collapse under slight change. This tension between order and fragility is central to the work’s meaning. Red wedge-like shapes are inserted between the components, functioning as both visual interruptions and structural stabilisers. These elements introduce a striking chromatic contrast against the muted steel surfaces, while also implying a logic of forced alignment. They appear to press, hold, or brace the stacked forms into position, reinforcing the sense that the structure is maintained through tension rather than inherent stability. The relationship between the steel elements and the red interventions creates a dynamic interplay between material weight and constructed control. The wedges suggest intervention, correction, or containment, disrupting the neutrality of the industrial forms and introducing a more expressive, diagrammatic quality. This combination shifts the work away from purely architectural reading and toward a more symbolic register, where construction becomes visibly negotiated rather than resolved. As with Burke’s broader “folly” and collage works, Stacked and Wedged No.2 reflects an interest in fragmentation as a productive condition. The instability of the structure is not resolved but held in suspension, allowing the viewer to perceive the work as both object and process. Meaning emerges through this precarious balance, where the act of assembly is never fully completed, and where the forces holding the structure together remain visible and active. Ultimately, the work embodies Burke’s sustained engagement with industrial material as a carrier of human tension and perception. Through stacking, wedging, and interruption, C5-537 Stacked and Wedged No.2 transforms simple structural relationships into a complex field of instability, where construction and collapse exist in constant proximity.