British artist Gillian Wearing is famed for work that explores family constructs, challenging traditional and perhaps outdated notions of family and identity. Back in 2008, she delved into the realms of northern Italian family life with A Typical Trentino Family, revealed in the form of a life-sized statue, depicting a real family from the area. She then initiated a similar project, A Real Birmingham Family (2014) just outside of the new Library of Birmingham and depicting two sisters (one of whom is heavily pregnant) along with their two sons.
Coinciding with her first solo show in Scandinavia, Wearing has now given sculptural form to her vision of the Danish family outside Copenhagen’s National Gallery (SMK). The project, titled A Real Danish Family, is a collaboration with SMK, Kunsthal Aarhus and DR, the Danish Broadcasting Corporation. Nearly 500 families of varying configurations from 14 different cities across the country applied to model for her work last autumn, a jury then selected the winning family. The entire process was followed by DR in the form of family interviews, and three exclusive programmes that featured the jury’s deliberations.
Self Portrait at 17 Years Old, 2003, by Gillian Wearing.
Michael, a 29-year-old man born to Danish parents in Italy, and Yenny-Louise, a 28-year-old woman who was born in Colombia, but raised in Denmark with adoptive parents, were crowned as Wearing’s Real Danish Family. The pair met, moved in together, opened a coffee shop and had their baby daughter all within a year, and like many of the families who participated, their story is at once unique and emblematic of contemporary Denmark. Their selection exposes the changes to the nuclear Danish family in the last 20-25 years, questioning whether all constructs that defy the traditional norms are regarded as equal.
Inside the SMK, Wearing’s exhibition, ‘Family Stories’, was a collaboration between the artist, the museum’s designers and RBS Studio. It takes visitors from a darkly-lit space, displaying Wearing’s most famous works from 1992 to the present day, to a noticeably smaller, white-washed room explaining the making of A Real Danish Family. This shift not only serves as a literal representation of important topics that were previously left in the dark and are now being brought to light, but also encourages an open and honest discussion.
By immortalising Michael and Yenny-Louise’s family in bronze, Wearing highlights the enduring importance of family as a social unit, while concurrently portraying the fragility, vulnerability and strength of modern-day family life. A Real Danish Family does not suggest an ideal formulation for the 21st century family; rather, it celebrates the unique story behind each one.
A Real Danish Family, 2017, by Gillian Wearing.
Family History, 2006, by Gillian Wearing.
HELP, 1992-1993, by Gillian Wearing.
I’M DESPERATE, 1992-1993, by Gillian Wearing.
My Mother’s Charms, 2016, by Gillian Wearing, 2016.
Self Portrait as My Father Brian Wearing, 2003, by Gillian Wearing.
Self Portrait as My Mother Jean Gregory, 2003, by Gillian Wearing.
INFORMATION
‘Family Stories’ is on view until 7 January 2018. For more information, visit the National Gallery of Denmark website
ADDRESS
National Gallery of Denmark
Sølvgade 48-50
1307 Copenhagen
-
Premium patisserie Naya is Mayfair’s latest sweet spotHeritage meets opulence at Naya bakery in Mayfair, London. With interiors by India Hicks and Anna Goulandris, the patisserie looks good enough to eat
-
Discover midcentury treasures in Marylebone with Álvaro by AppointmentLondon is full of sequestered design havens, and Wallpaper* knows them all. Allow us to point you in the direction of Álvaro González’s shop window on Nottingham Place, home to a bonanza of beautiful 20th-century antiques
-
Beach chic: the all-new Citroën Ami gets an acid-tinged, open-air Buggy variantCitroën have brought a dose of polychromatic playfulness to their new generation Ami microcar, the cult all-ages electric quadricycle that channels the spirit of the 2CV for the modern age
-
Inside Jack Whitten’s contribution to American contemporary artAs Jack Whitten exhibition ‘Speedchaser’ opens at Hauser & Wirth, London, and before a major retrospective at MoMA opens next year, we explore the American artist's impact
-
Frieze Sculpture takes over Regent’s ParkTwenty-two international artists turn the English gardens into a dream-like landscape and remind us of our inextricable connection to the natural world
-
Harlem-born artist Tschabalala Self’s colourful ode to the landscape of her childhoodTschabalala Self’s new show at Finland's Espoo Museum of Modern Art evokes memories of her upbringing, in vibrant multi-dimensional vignettes
-
Wanås Konst sculpture park merges art and nature in SwedenWanås Konst’s latest exhibition, 'The Ocean in the Forest', unites land and sea with watery-inspired art in the park’s woodland setting
-
Pino Pascali’s brief and brilliant life celebrated at Fondazione PradaMilan’s Fondazione Prada honours Italian artist Pino Pascali, dedicating four of its expansive main show spaces to an exhibition of his work
-
John Cage’s ‘now moments’ inspire Lismore Castle Arts’ group showLismore Castle Arts’ ‘Each now, is the time, the space’ takes its title from John Cage, and sees four artists embrace the moment through sculpture and found objects
-
Gerhard Richter unveils new sculpture at Serpentine SouthGerhard Richter revisits themes of pattern and repetition in ‘Strip-Tower’ at London’s Serpentine South
-
Peter Blake’s sculptures spark joy at Waddington Custot in London‘Peter Blake: Sculpture and Other Matters’, at London's Waddington Custot, spans six decades of the artist's career
