For Olafur Eliasson, art is a “crucial means of turning thinking into doing in the world”. Since 1997, the Icelandic-Danish artist has captivated audiences for his immersive large-scale art installations that challenge our perceptions and confront our relationship with the natural world. He rose to prominence with Weather Project (2003), a monumental art installation of the sun that was showcased at Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall. Beyond installations, Eliasson’s artistic endeavours extend to architectural projects such as the outstanding geometric facade of the Harpa Reykjavik Concert Hall and the castle-inspired building of the Fjordenhus.
For the first time, the internationally-renowned artist will stage his major solo exhibition, Olafur Eliasson: Your Journey in South East Asia at the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) taking place from 10 May 2024 to 22 September 2024. The exhibition will chronicle Eliasson’s 30 year artistic journey, presenting 17 artworks ranging from installations, sculptures, sketches and photographs that delves into themes of embodiment, perception, climate change and human perspective.
True to its title, the exhibition revolves around the viewer’s experience, crafting a unique personal journey for each individual. Upon arrival, visitors are greeted by a yellow corridor illuminated by a series of mono frequency lights. As one of Eliasson’s earlier works, the Yellow Corridor (1997) aims to impart viewers with a hyper-detailed vision and a heightened sense of awareness by limiting their perceivable colour spectrum. This installation reflects his interest in co-creation with his audiences, where the completion of the work hinges on the unique perspective of the viewer.
Eliasson introduced a new perspective of looking at art, focusing not on how we interpret it but how we perceive it. In Beauty (1993), a beam of light shines on a curtain of mist, forming an artificial rainbow visible only from certain viewpoints. Interestingly, each individual sees the rainbow differently due to the varied refraction and reflection of light. This underscores the role of the viewer and the act of perception, prompting the question: does the rainbow exist objectively, or does it exist because we perceive it?
The exhibition will showcase two Singapore-exclusive works, namely The Cubic Structural Project (2004) and Symbiotic Seeing (2020). The first installation invites visitors to tap into their imagination and creativity, building worlds from their minds using white lego bricks. The second installation explores Eliasson’s use of elemental materials such as light, water, wind and fog. By playing around with the intangible, he heightens our awareness of the world around us. Symbiotic Seeing (2020) presents a kaleidoscopic display of swirling fog using coloured laser lights and fog.
As a climate activist, Eliasson is dedicated towards shedding light on the ongoing climate catastrophe in his works. The artist will debut two never-before-seen works that prompts viewers to reflect on pressing environmental concerns. In The Last Seven Days Of Glacial Ice (2024), Eliasson offers a visual representation of the process of glacier ice melting. In each stage, clear orbs of varying sizes are presented beside the ice, illustrating the amount of water lost. This portrayal paints a poignant image of depletion and loss, addressing the urgent need for climate action.
In an effort to reduce his carbon footprint, most artworks shown in this exhibition were ferried from Berlin to Singapore. Eliasson documents his journey in The Seismographic Testimony Of Distance (2024) which features a series of seismographic sketches produced by drawing machines installed in the shipping crates. As the artist sails off to New Zealand, Taiwan, Indonesia, and the Philippines to launch his exhibition in the upcoming months, the artwork will further evolve.
Read more about Olafur Eliasson: Your Journey here.
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