mfc-michèle didier>Editions>Brognon Rollin> One Hour at a Time, 2026

While in 2011, Brognon Rollin focused on the lines of destiny of drug addicts who frequented a shoot-up room in Luxembourg on a daily basis, in 2026 their attention turns to people seeking to end various addictions and to become and remain abstinent.

For several years now, they have been collecting old sobriety tokens from various discussion groups and mental health self-help and support groups. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) tokens are the best known, as they were first used by members of that group in 1935.

Since then, many groups have adopted this practice to support people on their way to sobriety or abstinence—from drugs, gambling, sex, food, and more—and to symbolically mark the passage of time, much like a medal awarded to those who have maintained sobriety for a certain period.

On each anniversary, a sobriety token is presented, representing the duration—in hours, days, months, years, or decades—of abstinence.

Each token bears a single inscription: One day at a time, a reminder that it takes only one day to relapse and undo all the progress made toward recovery.

The Coin Pusher is a popular carnival game. The rule is simple: collect coins by pushing them into a slot using other coins that the player has placed in the machine.

The Coin Pushers One Hour at a Time is illuminated from the inside and contains second-hand sobriety tokens representing a total of 860 years, 148 months, 180 days and 145 hours. The mechanical arms will be reprogrammed to follow distinct rhythms and back-and-forth movements, animating each machine differently.

Every day, slowly but relentlessly and methodically, the arms will approach the anniversary-tokens—charged with courage, effort, joy, and frustration, collectively representing the passage of time spanning several decades, even centuries—without ever causing them to fall.”

Brognon Rollin One Hour at a Time, 2026

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2026

57.09 x 32.68 x 23.62 in

Unique piece

Coin pusher programmed to run on a 1-hour cycle.
Contains second-hand sobriety tokens representing a total of 860 years, 148 months,
180 days and 145 hours.

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On each anniversary, a sobriety token is presented, representing the duration—in hours, days, months, years, or decades—of abstinence.

Each token bears a single inscription: One day at a time, a reminder that it takes only one day to relapse and undo all the progress made toward recovery.

The Coin Pusher is a popular carnival game. The rule is simple: collect coins by pushing them into a slot using other coins that the player has placed in the machine.

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