Post-apocolyptic art: Daniel Arsham foresees life in 2044
Multi-disciplinary art-star Daniel Arsham is known for looking forwards. The Snarkitecture co-founder has a questioning, futuristic tone, that recurrs in whatever medium he’s picked that day – be it film, sculpture, paint or performance art. His new exhibition at Tokyo’s Nunzuka Gallery continues this probing theme through nine time-travelling works.
’My First Exhibition in Japan, Year 2044’ takes ageing media devices like boom-boxes and analogue cameras, and decays them in geological materials such as volcanic ash, selenite and crushed glass. Displayed with museum-like sterility, complete with holes, broken ariels and melted lenses, the objects are made alien, as if they’ve been excavated from a future archaeological dig.
We’ve seen Arsham destroy cameras before, back in 2012, where he plaster-cast them, then smashed them for ’Reach Ruin’ in Philadelphia. They appear again amongst the chalky rubble of his ’fictional archeology’ show in October 2015. These new sculptures have a darker, more sinister tone. The same intricate detail and satirical wit remains in their decay, but the smooth, ice-white plaster has been replaced by black tar and grainy ash.
Upping the stakes, Arsham has also fabricated a human body, preserved in a lava-like substance, with singed holes in the life-like skin. Protruding from the wall, trapped in stasis, the sculpture is reminiscent of the body casts at Pompeii. Eerily, only the face, arms and legs remain, with the feet still tucked in boots.
A little light is added to this prophetic showcase through four vibrant paintings of the moon, which use thick blue oils to create the bubbling crater-effect. Arsham’s film ’Future Relic’ also has a lunar theme, the last three chapters of which are on display. Posing as a potential future documentary, the film imagines a post-apocalyptic world in which large, geometric sections of the moon are excavated in an attempt to reverse the rising tides.
By citing the year ’2044’ in the title, Arsham creates a sense of urgency, hinting that this desolate land of ash clouds and heaving tides might not be so far away.
INFORMATION
’My First Exhibition in Japan, Year 2044’ runs through 16 April 2016. For more information, visit the Nanzuka Gallery website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
ADDRESS
Shibuya Ibis #B1F
2-17-3 Shibuya Shibuya-ku
Tokyo 150-0002, Japan
Photography courtesy the artist and Nanzuka Gallery
Elly Parsons is the Digital Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees Wallpaper.com and its social platforms. She has been with the brand since 2015 in various roles, spending time as digital writer – specialising in art, technology and contemporary culture – and as deputy digital editor. She was shortlisted for a PPA Award in 2017, has written extensively for many publications, and has contributed to three books. She is a guest lecturer in digital journalism at Goldsmiths University, London, where she also holds a masters degree in creative writing. Now, her main areas of expertise include content strategy, audience engagement, and social media.
-
Lexus installation explores time at Milan Design Week 2024
Lexus brought designer Hideki Yoshimoto’s ‘Beyond the Horizon’ to Milan’s Art Point, part of its ongoing series of collaborations with Fuorisalone
By Nargess Shahmanesh Banks Published
-
Cult 1960s boutique Granny Takes A Trip gets a sustainable reboot
Founded on King’s Road in 1966, ‘radically creative’ fashion store Granny Takes A Trip is being reimagined for a new generation. Dal Chodha takes a closer look
By Dal Chodha Published
-
Find yourself at Six Senses Kyoto, the brand's breathtaking Japan debut
Six Senses Kyoto opens its doors boasting tranquil, luxurious interiors by Blink Design Group
By Danielle Demetriou Published
-
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
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Oozing, squidgy, erupting forms come alive at Hayward Gallery
‘When Forms Come Alive: Sixty Years of Restless Sculpture’ at Hayward Gallery, London, is a group show full of twists and turns
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Olafur Eliasson inaugurates Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo
Olafur Eliasson marks launch of Azabudai Hills Gallery, in Tokyo’s major new district, with a show of elemental strength
By Danielle Demetriou Published
-
Daniel Arsham debuts new work in Paris and New York
Daniel Arsham and Perrotin mark 20 years of collaboration with New York and Paris exhibitions
By Hannah Silver Published
-
New glass sculpture creates a verdant wonderland at Apple’s Cupertino HQ
‘Mirage’ at Apple Park is the work of Zeller & Moye and artist Katie Paterson, a shimmering array of glass columns that snakes through the grounds of the company’s monumental HQ
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Man Ray’s sculptures go on show in New York
‘Man Ray: Other Objects’ opens at Luxembourg + Co, New York, revealing their author’s ‘artistic revolution’
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Photographer David Abrahams captures quiet moments in Japan for his new London show
‘Kyushu’ is a new show from photographer David Abrahams that documents his trip to a town on the Japanese island
By Mary Cleary Published
-
The best London art exhibitions to see now
Your guide to the best London art exhibitions, as chosen by the Wallpaper* arts desk
By Hannah Silver Published