WEEK 6- Anish Kapoor Sculpture

Week 6- Anish Kapoor Sculpture

Anish Kapoor

Celebrated for his gigantic, stainless steel Cloud Gate sculpture in Chicago’s Millennium Park, Anish Kapoor is changing the cultural environment with his public works. 

1.Research Kapoor's work in order to discuss whether it is conceptual art or not. Explain your answer, using a definition of conceptual art.

Conceptual art is a contemporary art form in which the idea and concept represent by the artist is more important than the finished project. To show more of the idea rather than to create an object based on it. I believe that Anish Kapoor’s work is considered more conceptual art as he shows more consideration of his idea on what he what to show rather than the object, and that they all go outside traditional processes and development of art that is shown.

2. Research 3 quite different works by Kapoor from countries outside New Zealand to discuss the ideas behind the work. Include images of each work on your blog.

Created to be a lasting legacy of London’s hosting of the 2012 Olympic Games, as well as being Britain’s largest public art, the ARcelorMittal Orbit is a clear example of conceptual art, which focuses less of the work and more of the abstract idea behind it. The tower is created to be wild and unexpected, with its ideas focused in terms of space, both in its external structure and its internal area. It is made not easy to understand.

ARcelorMittal Orbit (2012)

Sky Mirror is one of few similar public sculptures that consists of a six-meter wide concave dish made of polished stainless steel and angled up towards the sky. Its surface reflecting every part of the surrounding environment, the idea is focuses on the changes that occurs throughout day and night which he calls ‘non-object’, a sculpture that “despite its monumentality, suggests a window or void and often seems to vanish into its surroundings.” This is related to also what he calls the ‘notion of the void’.

Sky Mirror (2006)

Cloud Gates, considered one of the most recognized in Kapoor’s work, is consisted of 168 stainless steel plates weld together and highly polished so that it doesn’t show any visible seems. Inspired by the liquid mercury, the ideas here focuses on the reflective distortion of the city’s skylines, we "the space doesn't recede - it comes out at you ... a new sublime that's forward of the picture plane." (guardian.co.uk)

Cloud Gate (2004)

3.Discuss the large scale 'site specific' work that has been installed on a private site in New Zealand.

The piece known as “Dismemberment site 1” is one of the few piece of art that was specifically made by Anish Kapoor for  New Zealand-born businessman and art collector, Alan Gibbs, who invite him to New Zealand to create the piece. It was completed in 2009.

Dismemberment, Site 1

4. Where is the Kapoor's work in New Zealand? What are its form and materials? What are the ideas behind the work?
Dismemberment, Site 1 is located on Alan Gibb’s sculpture park known as "The Farm", which 50 km north of Auckland. The sculpture is made out of steel tubes and tension fabric known as PVC membrane that is stretched throughout the metal frame. For Kapoor’s idea, they are mainly focused on the connection between the work and the landscape that it occupies, and making the landscape part of his work. Wanting to “… make body into sky” his work is considered architectural, but his membrane help make it feel fleshy and living, to help add the depth in relation to its area. And its transformation of being a vertical and into a horizontal at each end also help it showing it connection to the land in terms of being unstable, being disjointed or dismembered, hence it’s name.

5. Comment on which work by Kapoor is your favourite, and explain why. Are you personally attracted more by the ideas or the aesthetics of the work?
My most favorite work by Kapoor is the London tower, also known simply as the orbit tower; the reason for this is due to the complex structure and the abstract design that is really innovative and unique. For this work, I believe that I am personally more attract to the aesthetics of the work as I find the look of the design to be just a great as the idea behind it, which is sometimes quite unique even in the art world.

 http://www.caroun.com/art/conceptualart/conceptualart.html

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conceptual%20art

http://www.gibbsfarm.org.nz/kapoor.php

http://www.anishkapoor.com/326/Dismemberment,-Site-I.html

http://publicartfund.org/pafweb/projects/06/kapoor/kapoor-06.html

http://explorechicago.org/city/en/things_see_do/attractions/dca_tourism/MP_orinigal.html

http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/art-and-design/2012/07/arcelormittal-orbit-londons-eiffel-tower