Daniel Silver creates new installation for London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Friday, November 15, 2024


Daniel Silver creates new installation for London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE
Daniel Silver, Human Activity, 2019. Photo by Andy Keate.



LONDON.- London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE today opened its latest contemporary art commission, Human Activity, by London-based artist Daniel Silver. Silver’s installation features a set of monumental, figurative works that speak to Silver’s fascination with the psychology and history of sculpture-making as well as his profound interest in ancient cultures and archaeology.

The 3.5-metre high works which comprise Human Activity originated as small clay objects made by Silver whilst observing a dancer in his studio. Sculpted by the artist to capture momentary postures and attitudes of the body in movement, a number of these diminutive figures have since been reconsidered and scaled in metalized polystyrene for the Bloomberg SPACE gallery.

Best known for his figurative sculptures, Silver is fascinated by the physical and emotional impact of the body and its representation. His practice is deeply influenced by the art of the classical world, Modernist sculpture, and psychoanalytic theory. Using natural materials such as bronze, marble, wood and clay, Silver’s works often appear as monuments or totems, as if belonging to an archaeological excavation. Like a contemporary Pygmalion, his figures seem to speak of the intimacy of touch and the memories inherited through material – exploring and manipulating the human figure, sometimes with force, at other times with the utmost sensitivity.

“My interest in handmade figures was sparked by visits to museums as a young child,” says Silver. “Here, I encountered the art of the ancient world and was fascinated by the latent sense of touch that was so powerfully communicated through the various historical approaches to producing clay figurines. From the Assyrians through to the Greeks and Romans, many figures still bear the marks of some long-gone human hand communicated across time, allowing for an understanding of the maker’s presence.”

Silver’s installation for London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE creates a surprisingly intimate encounter between the viewer and the artwork, evoking his early museum experiences. Here, one meets these huge, uncanny forms which speak of the past but are very much of the present. Adding to this sense of temporal blur, Silver has also applied the same colour used in the gallery’s artefact display case to the surrounding walls – creating an apparent archaeological context for the works. Beneath one’s feet, the Temple of Mithras acts as a constant dreamlike space between then and now.

Situated on the site of Bloomberg’s European headquarters, London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE returns the ruins of the 3rd century A.D. Roman Temple of Mithras to the location of its original discovery in the heart of the City – offering visitors an immersive experience of the ancient temple as well as a chance to see a remarkable collection of Roman artefacts found during the building’s excavations. Expanding on Bloomberg’s legacy of support for new commissions by international artists, the Bloomberg SPACE gallery aims to present thoughtful works by contemporary artists whilst bringing fresh perspectives to the many- layered history of the site.

Daniel Silver’s Human Activity is the fourth contemporary art display at London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE, following installations from Isabel Nolan (Another View from Nowhen: 8 November, 2017 – 3 June, 2018) and Pablo Bronstein (London in its Original Splendour: 14 June, 2018 – 19 January, 2019) and Claudia Wieser (Shift: January 31 – 13 July, 2019).

Daniel Silver was born in London in 1972. He studied at the Slade School of Fine Art and The Royal College of Art. His work was the subject of a major solo exhibition at The New Art Gallery Walsall earlier this year. Recent group exhibitions include Bumped Bodies, Whitechapel Art Gallery, London and Loss, Hydra School Projects, Hydra, Greece. Daniel Silver is represented by Frith Street Gallery, London.










Today's News

July 26, 2019

Twenty sculptors featured in Milwaukee private museum's new summer exhibition

Marlborough announces Jay Gorney as new Senior Director

Baseball legend Babe Ruth's coaching uniform expected to fetch $500,000

New research highlights threats facing Edinburgh's Royal Mile

Almine Rech now represents Vaughn Spann

MADSAKI's first solo exhibition in Hong Kong opens at Perrotin

Only Morton Bartlett figure in private hands to sell at Rago Auctions

Francisco Moreno's Chapel, the artist's largest painting project to date, acquired by the Dallas Museum of Art

Woodstock 50 fest will go on -- in Maryland

Owen Duffy appointed Director of Yeh Art Gallery at St. John's University

ICA Miami awards new annual sculpture prize to Damián Ortega

Cannes demands release of jailed Iranian film director Rasoulof

Daniel Silver creates new installation for London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE

Venice announces star lineup but just two films by women

Denver Art Museum announces Dakota Hoska as Assistant Curator of Native Arts

Zhang Enli collaborates with Fortnum & Mason

Kunsthaus Centre d'art Pasquart opens an exhibition of works by Céline Condorelli

PAFA receives Getty Foundation grant for traveling seminar on contemporary prints for new curators

Tupac Shakur's I.D. card sets world record for most expensive piece of rapper's memorabilia

New book offers an assessment of 50 years of design by architect Barton Myers

British Library project breathes new life into earliest recordings of Pacific cultures

Elisabetta Benassi's EMPIRE opens at MOSTYN

Denny Dimin Gallery presents a solo exhibition by Jordan Tate

Exhibition of graphite drawings by Brian Wood on view at Arts + Leisure

Best watercolor techniques for beginners

Amazingly Creative Product Photos

10 Famous Animated Logos for Your Inspiration

HOW TO CHOSE THE RIGHT COLOR OF YOUR GLASSES

Tips om hur du lånar online




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez
Writer: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful