PRESENTATION: Anish Kapoor-Untrue Unreal

Anish Kapoor is one of the most influential sculptors of his generation. Perhaps most famous for public sculptures that are both adventures in form and feats of engineering, Kapoor maneuvers between vastly different scales, across numerous series of work. Immense PVC skins, stretched or deflated; concave or convex mirrors whose reflections attract and swallow the viewer; recesses carved in stone and pigmented so as to disappear: these voids and protrusions summon up deep-felt metaphysical polarities of presence and absence, concealment and revelation.

 By Efi Michalarou
Photo: Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi Archive

The exhibition “Untrue Unreal”, is devised and produced with Anish Kapoor, who has revolutionised the notion of sculpture in contemporary art. The exhibition  features monumental installations, intimate environments and thought-provoking forms that will forge an original and captivating dialogue between the art of Anish Kapoor and the architecture and audience of Palazzo Strozzi. With a wide range of early, mid-career and recent works, including a new architecturally scaled work especially conceived for the Renaissance courtyard of Palazzo Strozzi, the exhibition offers an opportunity to engage directly with the artist’s oeuvre in all its versatility, discord, entropy and ephemerality. Palazzo Strozzi becomes a venue at once concave and convex, whole and yet fragmented, in which visitors are called on to question their senses. In Anish Kapoor’s art, the unreal merges with the untrue, transforming or negating the common perception of reality. He invites us to explore a world where the boundaries between what is true and false dissolve, opening the doors to the realm of the impossible. One of the distinguishing features is the way Kapoor’s works transcend their materiality. Kapoor’s works merge empty and full space, absorbing and reflecting surface, geometrical and biomorphic form. In a world where reality seems increasingly elusive and manipulable, Anish Kapoor challenges us to seek truth beyond appearances, inviting us to explore the territory of the untrue and the unreal.

Born to a Hindu father and a Jewish mother from Baghdad, Anish Kapoor had an Indian- Jewish upbringing. He was educated in the prestigious all- boys boarding school, The Doon School in Dehradun, India and in 1971 moved to Israel to live in a kibbutz. He later began his study in electrical engineering and after finding out that the discipline is not for him, he quit after 6 months. While in Israel he decided to become an artist, he soon moved to Great Britain to attend Hornsey College of Art (1973-77) and Chelsea School of Art and Design (1977-78). He went on to teach at Wolverhampton Polytechnic in 1979 and in 1982 was Artist in Residence at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool. After attending Chelsea School of Art for postgraduate studies, Kapoor quit after one year. Unsure where his art career would lead, he traveled back to India. His trip to India inspired a three-year period of creativity and lead to the creation of his first major works – his ritualistic pigment sculptures. Because of the material, people initially thought Kapoor was a female artist. In spite of this confusion, he quickly gained recognition within the international art community. Nicholas Logsdail, the owner of Lisson Gallery in London soon took notice of Kapoor’s work. During the early 1980s, Logsdail was gathering together a diverse selection of British sculptors, to later become known as the New British Sculptors, and he wanted Kapoor to be part of the group. With his reputation as a serious artist now secure, Kapoor represented Britain in the 1990 Venice Biennale, and won the prestigious Turner Prize in 1991. Kapoor found affinity in his use of traditional earthy materials and tendencies towards spiritual expression, with Logsdail’s vision of the New British Sculptors. The loosely formed group included Julian Opie, Antony Gormley, Richard Deacon, Tony Cragg, and Rachel Whiteread, and provided a network of equals with whom Kapoor could exhibit and share ideas. At the same time Kapoor found artistic success, he also found personal fulfillment. In 1995, he married the German-born art historian, Susanne Spicale, while also finally resolving his psychological issues. Crediting psychoanalysis with allowing him to explore his inner mind and process, Kapoor attributes the therapy to a better understanding of his art. From the mid-90s onwards he expanded his use of materials to include polished stainless steel, and then later red wax, and water. More recently, in last two decades, the artist’s works are often colossal and site-specific. In 2014, Kapoor obtained the exclusive rights to Vantablack, making him the only person in the world who could paint using this extremely deep shade of black. The concept of exclusivity surrounding a color seemed ridiculous and caused outrage amongst artists. As English painter, Christian Furr, explained of the controversy, “I’ve never heard of an artist monopolizing a material. Using pure black in an artwork grounds it. All the best artists have had a thing for pure black – Turner, Manet, Goya. This black is like dynamite in the art world.” In retaliation, contemporary British artist, Stuart Semple created the “world’s pinkest pink” and banned Kapoor from using it. And while he allows others to use the pigment, they must first agree to a legal declaration stating they are not Kapoor. Further escalating the feud, Kapoor posted a picture on social media of his middle finger dipped in the pink pigment and included the caption: “Up yours #pink”. Of course, despite these public escapades, Kapoor continues to produce work at a prolific rate, working from his studio in his home city of London.

Photo: Anish Kapoor, Untrue Unreal, Installation view Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi- Firenze, 2023-2024, Photo: Dave Morgan. © Anish Kapoor. All rights reserved SIAE, 2023, Courtesy the artist and Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi

Info: Curator: Arturo Galansino, Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi, Piazza Strozzi, Firenze, Italy, Duration: 7/10/2023-4/2/2024, Days & Hours: Mon-Wed & Fri-Sun 10:00-29:00, Thu 10:00-23:00, www.palazzostrozzi.org/