Anish Kapoor in "London"
Anish Kapoor
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A signature artist of his generation, the sculptor Anish Kapoor poetically transforms stainless steel, stone, wax, PVC, and colorful pigment into transcendent and mystifying forms that provoke fundamental questions about perception, consciousness, and spirituality. Capturing the iconic public sculpture Cloud Gate, popularly known as “The Bean,” in Chicago and a major retrospective in Beijing, this film is an intimate portrayal of a world-renowned artist. As he works in his South London studio with a team of assistants, Kapoor shares the motivations behind his ongoing explorations of concavity, scale, and the immersive potential of colors like black and red. These aspects of his work become metaphors for both the artist and the viewer and reminders to go inward to understand one’s sense of self, place, and significance. As the artist explains, “Truly opening oneself, to oneself, is the hardest work you can possibly do.”
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About the artists
Anish Kapoor was born in 1954 in Mumbai, India. World renowned for his perception-defying sculptures and large-scale public installations, Kapoor works with industrial materials like mirror, steel, stone, and vinyl to create forms that evoke the metaphysical and challenge viewers’ ideas about physical space. Kapoor’s sublime use of concave forms, reflective surfaces, intense colors, and monumental scale invites viewers to experience both collective awe and private contemplation.
Buoyed by London’s history of artistic excellence, four artists draw inspiration from decades of British art while contending with the repercussions of colonialism and xenophobia during a time of massive political upheaval in the country.
Educators’ Guides provide information about selected artists and themes, questions for classroom discussions, and hands-on activities that provide students with a fundamental understanding of creative and critical thinking processes.
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