Urban Art Association

Daniel Arsham on #Recollections, Architecture and More, by dreadnatty on Dec 18, 2014 2:35:08 GMT 1, Daniel Arsham on #Recollections, Architecture and More
www.highsnobiety.com/2014/12/17/daniel-arsham-recollections-interview/#slide-1

At the opening of his latest exhibition, this time in London, U.S. artist Daniel Arsham took time out to explain his fascination with spaces. The topic is suitable in relation to his work, #recollections, as the art piece is dominated by empty space. At the Pippy Houldsworth gallery, Arsham has taken over the main gallery space – but with only one art piece installed, the rest of the room is as much part of the installation as the silhouette of a “bound figure” that can be seen behind white sheets. Who it is and why he or she is bound is not clear. Arsham lets the observer speculate.
Arsham, born in Cleveland, Ohio, have made a name for himself by playing around with existing objects, most notably by eroding them. Cameras, boom boxes, film projectors, guitars – nothing is safe from Arsham. The technique has made him a 21st century pop artist: the objects Arsham selects are everyday pieces, objects that we all have,or have access to. There is nothing particular or special with the original object, rather they appeal to us in their eroded and semi-destroyed state. They look like artefacts from 2014, dug up by archaeologists in 2114.

The #recollections exhibition, though, is less about an object and more about a feeling, the feeling you get when looking at the hidden figure and the feeling the space gives you. You can’t make out the sex or nationality of the person, and the empty space adds to that feeling of uncertainty. Here, Arsham explains his position and why architecture is important in art…
You work with art, architecture and performance but how would you describe your work to someone’s who is not familiar with your work?

I’d say it’s an invitation to rethink the “every day,” to reimagine architecture and to re-think your position in time.

What does architecture mean to you? Do you construct actual buildings or change the appearance of already existing ones?

Much of my work involves the transformation or alteration of already existing architecture, causing it to appear as it’s doing something it shouldn’t normally do. It could be melting or appearing as it was constructed of fabric. I take a very solid form and make it appear fluid. With Snarkitecture [Arsham’s collaborative project with Alex Mustonen], we’ve started to construct real spaces, starting from scratch. In the last few years we’ve completed a couple of projects but from 2015, 2016 there’s a number of spaces that will pop up that are entirely Snarkitecture-constructed environments.

What is #recollections, can you describe the work?

A lot of my work, as mentioned, takes the surface of architecture and makes it look like it’s made out of a different material. And in the case of this particular work, it appears as if a figure has walked up to the wall and sort of stood against it and grabbed the wall from left and right, and wrapped the surface of the wall around themselves. It’s a piece where you might not immediately notice it when you walk into the room, it’s all white and somewhat quiet but it has a very strong, uncanny slightly familiar yet disturbing effect. This is achieved when something familiar and something foreign meets.

Who is that behind the curtain? What does the symbolism mean?

It’s not anyone in particular behind it and there is no symbolism per se. None of my work has any particular meaning. As I said, it’s a kind of an invitation… there’s no direct intention or specific outcome.

It’s a “bound figure”… what’s holding him back?

The title of the project is Bound Figure… I hate titling work. I do it just so I can differentiate them from other works.

What was the process like for this expo? What was the most challenging bit in terms of construction?

I made a number of these works over the last few years so I’ve figured out the best ways to make them work. This work involves draping and actual figure shaping, getting the shape of the fabric right and then creating the body out of fibre glass. The work is then brought to the gallery and plastered into the surface of the wall to appear as it’s one form.

In terms of artistic expression for you, how does this kind of work differ from your other, more product-focused pieces?

In some ways I imagine all my work the same. Making paintings, making sculpture, making works of architecture or design, making stage design, making film and taking photographs, they all feel the same to me. They all require the same attention and thinking. So it doesn’t really differ for me.

What’s the relationship between objects and spaces? Normally we put more focus on the objects, you seem equally obsessed with the space?

I feel architecture is important, it influences everything about the way we experience a space – how we enter it, the temperature, what the steps are like, what the door looks like and what the handles of the door feels like. Is the floor soft or hard? Does the room have an echo? If it’s a non-echo space, is it very quiet? Dark or light? Windows? Is the floor made out of natural or synthetic materials – all of these things have a profound influence on our experience of a work of art inside that room. I’m certainly obsessed with spaces because I think that I can use it to influence people in the way they experience my work.

“Special Project” runs until January 7.

Pippy Houldsworth Gallery
6 Heddon Street
London W1B 4BT