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Lot Essay
A mesmeric purple orb, Anish Kapoor’s Untitled (2009) lures us into a realm where reality ceases to be physical. The concave hemisphere extends more than three feet in diameter, immersing the viewer within its luminescent glow. Its translucent, resin surface is polished like a fine gemstone, reflecting everything within its orbit in a transfixing visual spectacle. Inflecting rich histories of sculptural discourse, Kapoor’s work lingers mysteriously between dichotomies of positive and negative space, interiority and exteriority, projection and recession. ‘I made this very strange discovery’, the artist remarked, ‘that by emptying out—it seems to be about being and non-being—as the works become more hollow, they also have become much more physical’ (A. Kapoor, quoted in A. Meer, ‘Anish Kapoor,’ Bomb 30, Winter 1990, p. 42). Creating through the physical act of negation, Kapoor’s reflective, concave works are among his most acclaimed, and include public sculptures Turning the World Inside Out (1995), Sky Mirror (2006) and Cloud Gate (2004), on permanent display in Chicago’s Millennium Park.
Beguiling and bewitching, the present work inspires a sense of meditation that recalls the Romantic condition of the ‘sublime’. Kapoor has spoken of being an heir to artists such as Caspar David Friedrich, who sought to portray moments of awe in their landscape paintings. Sublimating ordinary matter to something spiritual and transcendent, Kapoor believes in the alchemical nature of artistic creation. ‘The polished surface is in fact not different from the pigment’, he has stated. ‘In the end it has to do with issues that lie below the material, with the fact that materials are there to make something else possible’ (A. Kapoor quoted in H. K. Bhabha, ‘Anish Kapoor: Making Emptiness’ in Anish Kapoor, exh. cat. Hayward Gallery, London 1998, p. 18). Like the protagonist of Friedrich’s Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog (1818) gazing over rocky clifftops to the swirling mists beneath, the viewer of Untitled is made conscious of themselves standing on the precipice of an unknowable abyss.
Conceiving of his sculptures and installations as portals, immaterial points of entry and departure, Kapoor has described his works as ‘space[s] of becoming’ (A. Kapoor quoted in ibid., p. 35). Indeed, the impossibly smooth, concave form of the present work represents a radical gesture in the history of sculpture. Continuing the conceptual aims of his iconic Mirror series, Kapoor’s work turns away from the projecting, linear emphasis of Western sculpture. The mirrored and highly polished surfaces seem to evade, if not defy form altogether as they curve inwards, reflecting the viewer’s image and inviting introspection. Combining dazzling amethyst hue with smooth, hollowed form, Untitled attests to Kapoor’s fundamental dialectic: that sculpture, typically engaged with technical processes of removal, reduction, and negation of matter, is simultaneously a defiant act of physical creation.
Shifting Vision’s Artist Residency will be nestled in the sublime landscapes of Crete with unparalleled views of the sea and the distant Paximadia islands. It is envisioned not just as an artistic retreat, but as a harmonious blending of ancient wisdom, natural beauty, and contemporary innovation. Once established, it will extend select invitations to artists to delve deep into the rich history, traditions, and nature of this remarkable island, all while creating pioneering artworks that resonate globally.
Beguiling and bewitching, the present work inspires a sense of meditation that recalls the Romantic condition of the ‘sublime’. Kapoor has spoken of being an heir to artists such as Caspar David Friedrich, who sought to portray moments of awe in their landscape paintings. Sublimating ordinary matter to something spiritual and transcendent, Kapoor believes in the alchemical nature of artistic creation. ‘The polished surface is in fact not different from the pigment’, he has stated. ‘In the end it has to do with issues that lie below the material, with the fact that materials are there to make something else possible’ (A. Kapoor quoted in H. K. Bhabha, ‘Anish Kapoor: Making Emptiness’ in Anish Kapoor, exh. cat. Hayward Gallery, London 1998, p. 18). Like the protagonist of Friedrich’s Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog (1818) gazing over rocky clifftops to the swirling mists beneath, the viewer of Untitled is made conscious of themselves standing on the precipice of an unknowable abyss.
Conceiving of his sculptures and installations as portals, immaterial points of entry and departure, Kapoor has described his works as ‘space[s] of becoming’ (A. Kapoor quoted in ibid., p. 35). Indeed, the impossibly smooth, concave form of the present work represents a radical gesture in the history of sculpture. Continuing the conceptual aims of his iconic Mirror series, Kapoor’s work turns away from the projecting, linear emphasis of Western sculpture. The mirrored and highly polished surfaces seem to evade, if not defy form altogether as they curve inwards, reflecting the viewer’s image and inviting introspection. Combining dazzling amethyst hue with smooth, hollowed form, Untitled attests to Kapoor’s fundamental dialectic: that sculpture, typically engaged with technical processes of removal, reduction, and negation of matter, is simultaneously a defiant act of physical creation.
Shifting Vision’s Artist Residency will be nestled in the sublime landscapes of Crete with unparalleled views of the sea and the distant Paximadia islands. It is envisioned not just as an artistic retreat, but as a harmonious blending of ancient wisdom, natural beauty, and contemporary innovation. Once established, it will extend select invitations to artists to delve deep into the rich history, traditions, and nature of this remarkable island, all while creating pioneering artworks that resonate globally.