Dive Deep Into Contemporary Art Installations -

Student Eats Maurizio Cattelan’s $120,000 Banana for Breakfast

Jessica Stewart — Tue, 02 May 2023 17:30:47 +0000

Student Eats Maurizio Cattelan’s $120,000 Banana for Breakfast

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In 2019, conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan sent shockwaves through the art world when he duct-taped a banana to the wall and called it a piece of art. The performance happening at Art Basel Miami, and the piece, titled Comedian, was sold as an edition of three for $120,000 each. Now Comedian is back in the news after a Korean university student decided the banana was the perfect snack.

Noh Huyn-soo plucked the banana off the wall of the Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul and ate it before putting the empty peel back up on the wall. A friend recorded the entire act, which took just under a minute. When asked why he ate the banana, Noh simply told Korean journalists that he was hungry after having skipped breakfast that morning. During an interview with broadcaster KBS he expanded the reasons behind his actions, stating that “damaging a work of modern art could also be [interpreted as] artwork.” He also said that he reattached the peel as “a joke.”

The museum staff replaces the banana every two to three days and quickly moved to take down the peel and put up a new banana. Comedian is at the museum as part of Cattelan's solo exhibition WE, which is on display until July 16. The Italian artist is currently in New York, and when asked his opinion about Noh's actions, he reportedly responded, “No problem.”

Given Cattelan's reaction, the museum has decided not to take action against Noh. In reality, Noh isn't the first person to take a bite out of the banana. During the 2019 installation at Art Basel Miami, Georgian performance artist David Datuna took the banana off the wall and ate it. In that case, Datuna said that he took issue with the fact that Cattelan was selling Comedian for such a high price.

During an interview with The Guardian, Datuna explained, “What I don’t like, however, is that a banana costs 20 cents. I think it is a good idea to put it in a museum if it is free to watch. But when you sell it for $120,000? Then decide to make a second and third edition, and that third edition is $150,000? It is silly, and not good for our contemporary life.”

Cattelan, whose work is infused with humor and satire, is used to getting people talking. Last year, his fully functional, 18-carat gold toilet titled America was stolen from the UK's Blenheim Palace in a move that led to flooding and damage at the historical building. And in 1996, he actually stole the entire contents of another artist's show and attempted to pass it off as his own for an exhibition called Another F****** Readymade, with the idea of creating a found art hall. His plans were foiled when Dutch police threatened to arrest him.

h/t: [The Guardian]

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Monumental Lollapalooza Sculpture Is a Towering Pine Cone Created With 95 Car Hoods

Sara Barnes — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 13:50:58 +0000

Monumental Lollapalooza Sculpture Is a Towering Pine Cone Created With 95 Car Hoods

Photo: Federico Cairoli

In the proper context, one object can completely transform into something else. Work by Argentina-based Estudio Normal is an awe-inspiring example of this phenomenon. The multidisciplinary architecture and design office created a sculpture titled Capot (Spanish for a car hood) at the center of Lollapalooza 2023 in Buenos Aires. Although at first glance it appears as a giant pine cone, the entire form was created using 95 hoods from Volkswagen Golf vehicles.

Capot is a towering sculpture that was a beacon for festivalgoers to gather during Lollapalooza. It had seating areas—both on the ground and as car hood benches—while acting as a unique and creative backdrop among the crowds and other goings on. Sometimes it was kept unlit and showed off its white and blue scalloped edges, while at night it was illuminated with a bright ultramarine and teal glow. The former allowed viewers to enjoy its finer details while the latter showcased its monumental collective shape.

The fabrication of the work was built with sustainability in mind. The sculpture harvested existing resources, using what was already produced and reimagining it in new and exciting ways. But there was also the question of what happened to the sculpture when its exhibition was over. For that, the design team implemented a “catch and release” that allowed most of the manufacturing pieces to return to the production line and lessen the environmental impact.

Capot is the first in Estudio Normal's formal research project titled Autopartes. Inspired by the automobile industry—a vital part of Argentina’s national economy—it explores new ways to transform everyday objects by way of design and offer them a second life.

Argentina-based Estudio Normal created a sculpture titled Capot (Spanish for a car hood).

Photo: Federico Cairoli

It sat at the center of Lollapalooza 2023 in Buenos Aires.

Photo: Federico Cairoli

Although at first glance it appears as a giant pine cone, the entire form is actually made of 95 hoods from Volkswagen Golf vehicles.

Photo: Federico Cairoli

Sometimes it was kept unlit and showed off its white and blue scalloped edges, while at night it was illuminated with a bright ultramarine and teal glow.

Photo: Federico Cairoli

The former allowed viewers to enjoy its finer details while the latter showcased its monumental collective shape.

Photo: Federico Cairoli

Estudio Normal: Website | Instagram

My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Estudio Normal.

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Take a Look at the Massive Art Installations of Coachella 2023

Margherita Cole — Thu, 20 Apr 2023 13:50:21 +0000

Take a Look at the Massive Art Installations of Coachella 2023

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Kumkum Fernando, “The Messengers,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

In preparation for the 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, artists from around the world were selected to transform the desert landscape. This year's edition features the massive sculptural works by Kumkum Fernando, Vincent Leroy, Güvenç Özel, and Maggie West, which permeate the skyline with architectural shapes, bright colors, and opalescent details. From towering robotic figures to larger-than-life flora, these eye-catching pieces envelop the festival with vibrancy and creativity.

While Coachella is commonly known for its musical aspect, art plays a major role in setting the atmosphere and enhancing the experience of the festival. “In selecting projects from around the world, our intention is to bring together artists, architects, and designers whose practices invite participation, inclusion, and transformation,” says curatorial advisor Raffi Lehrer. “We strive to create a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural program that reflects our audience and the many performing artists that grace the stages of the festival. The resulting works will become icons—part of the identity of this year's show. These installations act simultaneously as way-finding markers, points of congregation, and most importantly, accessible entry points for show-goers to experience art.”

Each year, the festival has grown artistically, attracting talented creatives to display their work as well as numerous fans to see the installations in person. “The arts program has evolved significantly since inception and the participants, who come from around the world and from Southern California are well-respected in their fields, presenting extraordinary and thoughtful works in a setting where they can inspire, inform, and invite direct engagement with art and current social and cultural themes and ideas,” adds Paul Clemente, the manager of the art program for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. “It is a unique aspect of this Festival, and we really endeavor to carry that spark into the community and adjacent school programs and our on-site Coachella Arts Studios.”

Coachella is held over two consecutive weekends, this year being April 14 to April 16, and April 21 to April 23, 2023. Scroll down to see more photos of the spectacular installations from 2023 and to learn about some of the inspiration behind the art.

Take a look at some of the massive art installations from the Coachella 2023 music and arts festival.

The Messengers by Kumkum Fernando

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Kumkum Fernando, “The Messengers,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Sri Lankan-born and Vietnam-based artist Kumkum Fernando drew inspiration from South Asian art and architecture for his installation. Titled The Messengers, it includes three large-scale figures measuring between 65 and 80 feet and covered with an array of bright colors and prints. The assemblage of different patterns is inspired by Fernando's collection of various objects and items that he has accumulated.

“Whenever I travel, I collect and document,” he says. “I have a library that I go through at different points in time. When I put them together, I often see unexpected things. I made a series of work completely out of window grills, another series from patterns from Persian rugs, and another from temple patterns. One day, I was arranging objects, and they appeared to form a figure. Then I thought I should make figures with these patterns.”

Kumkum Fernando: Website | Instagram

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Kumkum Fernando, “The Messengers,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Eden by Maggie West

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Maggie West, “Eden,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Los Angeles-based artist Maggie West brings spring to the desert with her installation Eden. Featuring photographs of a variety of plants in two color schemes (pinks and blues), West added these floral images to 20 steel structures, each covered with wood and vinyl. The garden includes structures that measure from 6 to 46 feet tall, making it one of the world's largest 3D photography installations.

“By photographing familiar objects with multicolored lights, my work helps viewers look closer at some of the nature that they might take for granted,” West explains, “like the texture of the snake plants and the stamens in the centers of the lilies.”

Maggie West: Website | Instagram

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Maggie West, “Eden,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Maggie West, “Eden,” photo by Julian Bajsel, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Maggie West, “Eden,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Holoflux by Güvenç Özel

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Güvenç Özel, “Holoflux,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Holoflux is a 60-foot-tall sculpture by LA-based artist Güvenç Özel. Abstract in form, this piece appears white by day, and by night, the sculpture comes alive through various lighting features like projections, graphics, and even video that cover its many sides.

“I consider myself a cyber physical architect and a critical technologist,” Özel says. “Cyber physical, meaning the work covers cyberspace and physical environments and the interaction between the two. Critical technologist, meaning engaging with new technological tools—their meaning, their impact on our social interactions, their impact on our environmental and political considerations, and how we can create more meaningful and engaging experiences to enhance the way that we socialize and communicate with each other.”

Güvenç Özel: Website | Instagram

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Güvenç Özel, “Holoflux,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Güvenç Özel, “Holoflux,” photo by Julian Bajsel, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Güvenç Özel, “Holoflux,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Güvenç Özel, “Holoflux,” photo by Tyler Borchardt, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Güvenç Özel, “Holoflux,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Molecular Cloud by Vincent Leroy

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Vincent Leroy, “Molecular Cloud,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Paris-based artist Vincent Leroy brings buoyancy to the festival through his installation Molecular Cloud. As its name suggests, this pink, multi-part piece is based on the shapes of molecular clouds. Rather than being fixed to the ground, these inflatable objects are suspended in the air, reflecting the surroundings on their shiny, surface. Due to the changeable nature of this piece, it comes as no surprise that Leroy's art is based on the kind of movement that “inspires life, amazement, and a permanently shifting viewpoint.”

Vincent Leroy: Website | Instagram

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2023 installation view of Vincent Leroy, “Molecular Cloud,” photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Coachella

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival: Website | Instagram | Facebook

My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

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Thought-Provoking Exhibit Explores “Fictional Archaeology” With Modern-Day Relics for the Future

Sara Barnes — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 20:15:06 +0000

Thought-Provoking Exhibit Explores “Fictional Archaeology” With Modern-Day Relics for the Future

Installation view: Daniel Arsham: Wherever You Go, There You Are, 2023. Orange County Museum of Art. (Photo: Yubo Dong, ofstudio)

Understanding the past is vital to our future. It’s why, even millions of years later, archeologists are enthralled with pre-historic discoveries. As we sort through them, it can help bring the present into focus. Artist Daniel Arsham creates works that are inspired by the practice of archaeology, but he considers it from an alternative perspective. Instead of sorting through the past, Arsham is interested in digging into the future. His solo exhibition Wherever You Go, There You Are at the Orange County Museum of Art explores the notion of “fictional archaeology” by way of sculpture, photography, and painting.

The pieces featured in the exhibition—his first major museum show in the U.S.—are recognizable figures in contemporary popular culture. They are cast to look like relics that future generations will excavate and study in the same way we have with Egyptian mummies or centuries-old shipwrecks. Arsham's works are constructed from geological materials like sand, pyrite, and volcanic ash.

One of the most identifiable pieces is a replica of the 1981 DeLorean, the time-traveling car from the Back to the Future film franchise. It’s patinated to show its age and looks like it’s been dug up. There are even chunks missing from it that show its inner structure. An astronaut space suit has a similar treatment with part of it showing decay. These striking elements are placed alongside other future ruins including sports equipment and the telephone.

At its core, Arsham’s work tells the story of human existence. A lot can be understood by a society’s visual culture as seen through the objects it produced. In looking at them with a critical eye, future generations have a sense of what was important to our society and how those things contributed to our world today.

The thought-provoking Wherever You Go, There You Are reminds us that the things we make today will one day be studied and that the tie that binds us all is a desire to continue the tradition of object creation. The show is currently on view at the Orange County Museum of Art until June 4, 2023.

Artist Daniel Arsham creates works that are inspired by the practice of archaeology, but he considers it from an alternative perspective.

Photo: Eugene Kim / My Modern Met

Instead of sorting through the past, Arsham is interested in digging into the future.

Installation view: Daniel Arsham: Wherever You Go, There You Are, 2023. Orange County Museum of Art. (Photo: Yubo Dong, ofstudio)

His solo exhibition Wherever You Go, There You Are at the Orange County Museum of Art explores the notion of “fictional archaeology” by way of sculpture, photography, and painting.

Installation view: Daniel Arsham: Wherever You Go, There You Are, 2023. Orange County Museum of Art. (Photo: Yubo Dong, ofstudio)

The pieces featured in the exhibition—his first major museum show in the U.S.—are recognizable figures in popular culture.

Installation view: Daniel Arsham: Wherever You Go, There You Are, 2023. Orange County Museum of Art. (Photo: Yubo Dong, ofstudio)

They are cast to look like relics that future generations will excavate and study.

Installation view: Daniel Arsham: Wherever You Go, There You Are, 2023. Orange County Museum of Art. (Photo: Yubo Dong, ofstudio)

Photo: Eugene Kim / My Modern Met

Daniel Arsham: Website

My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Orange County Museum of Art (where applicable).

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Interactive Exhibition Celebrates Spring With Shape-Shifting Graphics of Beautiful Blooms

Margherita Cole — Sun, 26 Mar 2023 13:45:00 +0000

Interactive Exhibition Celebrates Spring With Shape-Shifting Graphics of Beautiful Blooms

Springtime in Japan is known for spectacular cherry blossoms. While these are visible in real life between March and April, art collective teamLab creates annual immersive exhibitions that capture the beauty of these delicate pink flowers through amazing digital graphics. Hosted at teamLab Forest Fukuoka, this year's experience promises even more visual wonders with the addition of holographic animals.

As you move through the different rooms of the museum, you encounter a variety of images featuring blooms and creatures. When you touch the walls or approach these computer-generated animations, the elements change—flowers bloom, disperse, and more. No matter where your attention turns to in the museum, you will find that the graphics are constantly changing. The sakura installation belongs to the museum's larger exhibit, titled Shifting Valley, Living Creatures of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives—a Whoe year per Year.

For 2023, teamLab has also incorporated life-size animal animations, which take form on March 24 (a couple of weeks into the exhibit). Kangaroos, giraffes, flamingos, and leopards can be seen traversing the ever-changing digital landscape, and you'll even be able to use your smartphones to “capture” these colorful visuals. Like the flowers, these animals do not keep still and will move or change according to how the audience interacts with the space.

Adults can purchase tickets for the exhibition for 1,600 yen ($12) during the week, and 1,800 yen (about $13.35) during weekends.

Art collective teamLab presents its new exhibition at celebrating spring.

Located at their Forest museum in Fukuoka, it features numerous interactive rooms.

The exhibition evolves into a safari game.

Watch this video for a sneak peek of the exhibition:

teamLab: Website | Facebook | Instagram

My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by teamLab.

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JR Unveils Giant Installation of Athlete Jumping Over Hong Kong’s Bamboo Scaffolding

Jessica Stewart — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 17:30:27 +0000

JR Unveils Giant Installation of Athlete Jumping Over Hong Kong’s Bamboo Scaffolding

Three years after it was originally scheduled, JR‘s enormous art installation has finally taken its place overlooking Hong Kong's Victoria Bay. The French artist didn't let delays brought on by the pandemic stop him from creating Rising Up, which was inaugurated to usher in Hong Kong Arts Month.

The piece shows an athlete jumping across a mass of bamboo scaffolding and is a continuation of the Giants series that JR began during the 2016 Rio Olympics. For JR, who says he's always been intrigued by Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolding, it only made sense to revisit the project in this location.

“As an athletic gesture, ‘rising up' embodies taking the risk to separate oneself from solid earth, to resist the pull of gravity and feel the brief freedom of flight,” he explains.

Measuring nearly 40 feet tall and 40 feet wide, the installation is impossible to miss when visiting Hong Kong's Ocean Terminal Deck. The impressive installation is garnering a lot of attention and is particularly popular on Instagram, with visitors posting pictures daily. But, for some, there are concerns about the artwork.

In particular, practitioners of feng shui, have taken issue with the composition. Feng shui calls for the specific arrangement of objects in order to optimize the flow of positive energy. It is widely practiced throughout Asia and taken into consideration for design and architecture projects. Some followers have voiced their concern with the high-jumper's position.

Artnet quoted feng shui master Po Sin as one of several experts who questioned JR's artwork in a recent YouTube video: “Doesn’t it look like someone who fell off from a building landing on a bamboo scaffolding, and the body is pierced through by the bamboos?”

“You can have people climbing on a bamboo scaffolding, but not having someone landing on it on a person’s back,” he continued.

Criticisms surrounding the installation mirror concerns around previous artworks on Victoria Bay. In 2019, American artist KAWS found his sculpture, Companion, at the center of a similar controversy. The enormous sculpture showed the artist's signature character floating in the bay and was compared to a “floating dead body” by feng shui master Steve Lee. Feng shui believers later viewed it as an omen of the police crackdown against pro-democracy protestors that occurred just a few months later.

Whether you feel JR's installation should adhere to feng shui rules or not, there's no doubt it cuts an impressive figure across the skyline. And, for now, it will remain as is until it finishes its run on April 23, 2023.

A new installation by French street artist JR has gone up in celebration of Hong Kong Arts Month.

The impressive installation has caused a stir with some, who view the position of the athlete's body in opposition of the basic principles of feng shui.

h/t: [artnet]

JR: Website | Facebook | Instagram

All images via Harbour City.

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Massive Flower Arrangement Is Encased in Layers of Ice

Margherita Cole — Fri, 17 Mar 2023 19:20:49 +0000

Massive Flower Arrangement Is Encased in Layers of Ice

The frozen landscape of Hokkaido in Japan was adorned once again by one of Azuma Makoto‘s surreal installations. Using a colorful assortment of bouquets and plenty of water, the Japanese botanical artist created a towering frozen sculpture. All of the flowers and plants remain trapped in this striking form, still vibrant and in bloom, for as long as the layers of ice remain.

This is the second time Makoto produced Frozen Flowers; and just like the 2021 version, he traveled to the Notsuke peninsula in Hokkaido to set up the installation when winter was at its coldest point. So, he brought dozens of botanicals to a snowy clearing and assembled them atop a steel pole structure. After weaving the flowers into a cohesive form—all during the night and early hours of the morning—he poured water on top. Due to the freezing temperature, the water quickly froze over, preserving the plants and creating dozens of icicles hanging off each bloom and leaf.

When Makoto poses next to his work, we are able to get an understanding of the sheer scale of the structure, which looms tall in the barren landscape. He intentionally chose this empty area to install the multicolored sculpture, demonstrating the visual power of flowers in such extreme conditions. Their lives are dependent on the ice, and as soon as that melts, the flowers will eventually wilt with time.

You can watch a video of Azuma's process via his website. Scroll down to see more images of this amazing piece, and follow the artist on Instagram to keep up to date with his latest projects.

Artist Azuma Makoto returned to Hokkaido in 2023 to construct a new magical flower sculpture.

He constructed a towering structure by weaving botanicals together.

Then he poured water on top to freeze all of the flowers and plants together.

Frozen Flowers 2023 stands tall and colorful in a cold, snowy landscape.

Azuma Makoto: Website | Facebook | Instagram

My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Azuma Makoto.

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Tyre Nichols’ Photos Are on Billboards in Palm Springs as Moving Tribute to His Creativity

Jessica Stewart — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 18:25:15 +0000

Tyre Nichols’ Photos Are on Billboards in Palm Springs as Moving Tribute to His Creativity

California's Coachella Valley has been transformed into a site-specific art exhibition. Called Desert X, the event features 12 international artists using the desert as their playground. This year includes a touching tribute as Tyre Nichols has been included in the lineup. The young Black father was passionate about photography before being brutally beaten by Memphis police officers in early January 2023. Three days later, he died from his injuries. Now, his work has returned to California—where he spent the better part of his life—in a moving display.

Nichols' photographs of Memphis landscapes and architecture adorn billboards along a Palm Springs highway. Photography was a creative outlet that helped him when he moved to Tennessee in 2020 and gave him a reason to go out and explore his surroundings.

“It expresses me in ways I cannot write down for people,” Nichols wrote of his photography. “My vision is to bring my viewers deep into what I am seeing through my eye and out through my lens. People have a story to tell why not capture it instead of doing the ‘norm' and writing it down or speaking it.”

For the organizers of Desert X, the installation was a way to not only honor Nichols but all victims of institutional racism.

“Here the silent beauty of these levitated images stands in stark contrast with the terror experienced by Nichols and so many others on the shoulder below. But as with the vision the message is also one of hope: hope that with restrictions on pretextual stops California can lead the way in police reform; hope that together we can create a just society in which the fragile and beautiful talents of the likes of Tyre Nichols can flourish and grow.”

Nichols' installation is supported by the Palm Springs Public Art Commission and on view—along with the work of 11 other artists—through May 7, 2023. Desert X asks those looking to support Nichols to donate to the GoFundMe created by Nichols' mother.

The photography of Tyre Nichols is being displayed on billboards along a highway in Palm Springs.

Nichols was brutally beaten by officers in Memphis after a routine traffic stop and died from his injuries three days later.

Nichols, who grew up in California, was passionate about photography and spent his free time pursuing this hobby.

He is now one of 12 artists participating in the Desert X site-specific art exhibition in California's Coachella Valley.

His photography is on view until May 7, 2023.

Desert X: Website | Facebook | Instagram

All images via Lance Gerber. My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Desert X.

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Giant Bubbles Pop Up as Immersive Installations All Over the World

Margherita Cole — Wed, 22 Feb 2023 14:50:18 +0000

Giant Bubbles Pop Up as Immersive Installations All Over the World

Sydney-based studio Atelier Sisu creates immersive art all around the world. Led by Peruvian sculptor and industrial designer Renzo B. Larriviere and architectural designer and artist Zara Pasfield, the studio combines their talents with their multi-disciplinary team to create public art everyone can enjoy. One of their latest projects, titled Evanscent, features massive, colorful bubbles inhabiting varied environments.

So far, Evanscent has been displayed in over 22 different cities in 12 different countries across 4 continents. From urban spaces to spacious parks, these opalescent orbs bring a sense of whimsy wherever they are placed. “Evanescent is an immersive, light and sound temporary environment that aims to capture the concept of ephemerality and transience is a visual form: the bubble,” Atelier Sisu tells My Modern Met. “Evanescent is an adjective, meaning the quality of being fleeting or vanishing quickly; impermanence.”

Atelier Sisu pinpoints their inspiration for the installation to the pandemic when “everything we took for granted started to disappear.” They translated their appreciation for ephemeral beauty and life to monumental bubbles, which they create with the use of inflatable structures. “By day, Evanscent captures the light of the sun through its color-reflecting dichroic film that reacts to the changing light as it moves across the sky, causing a rainbow of reflection across the ground and a unique picture from every angle,” they add. The reflective rainbow qualities of the structures perfectly mimic the appearance of real-life bubbles, allowing people to engage with the installation in a childlike way.

Scroll down to see more photos of the installation, and be sure to follow Atelier Sisu on Instagram to keep up to date with their latest projects.

Sydney-based studio Atelier Sisu creates immersive installations of massive, colorful bubbles.

Titled Evanescent, this artwork attempts to communicate the feeling of transient beauty.

These inflatable structures have been installed in cities around the world, bringing a sense of whimsy wherever they go.

Their rainbow exterior perfectly mimics the appearance of real-life bubbles during the day.

Atelier Sisu: Website | Facebook | Instagram

My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Atelier Sisu.

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Anish Kapoor Unveils New “Mini Bean” Sculpture in New York City

Margherita Cole — Thu, 02 Feb 2023 21:15:37 +0000

Anish Kapoor Unveils New “Mini Bean” Sculpture in New York City

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Nearly 20 years after the debut of Cloud Gate, colloquially referred to as “The Bean,” in Chicago, British-Indian sculptor Anish Kapoor has unveiled its twin in New York City. The new reflective sculpture is smaller than its predecessor, and tucked into a corner of the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan, underneath a condo called Jenga. While the naming ceremony won't take place until the spring, the modern installation has already caught the attention of people walking by.

Compared to Cloud Gate, which measures 66 feet long and 33 feet high and is situated in the middle of Millennium Park, the new “mini bean” is a little more inconspicuous. Not only is it slightly more diminutive in size—coming in at about 48 feet long and 19 feet tall—but it also wraps around the corner of a tower, just beside the sidewalk and intersection. In spite of these differences, it still shares many traits with Kapoor's first version, featuring 38 stainless-steel plates that have been welded together and polished to a smooth, pebble-like shape.

Kapoor's newest work cost between $8 million and $10 million and was not without its share of challenges. In addition to the pandemic, which stretched construction to four years, the fabricator of the sculpture, Performance Structures, Inc., also had to secure the installation in a different way than Cloud Gate, which is bolted to the plaza in Millennium Park. “The Leonard Street sculpture has a different support mechanism,” the fabricator explains. “When completed, the entire sculpture will be suspended with a system of cables and spring members so that it will be able to move slightly with changes of temperature and wind and snow loads. All of the cables will need to be properly tensioned during the installation process.”

You can find the new “mini bean” sculpture at 56 Leonard Street in Manhattan.

After four years of construction, New York City has its own “Bean” sculpture.

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A post shared by Tribeca Citizen (@tribecacitizen)

The new installation was designed by British-Indian sculptor Anish Kapoor, who created Cloud Gate, better known as “The Bean” sculpture in Chicago.

Strolling down in Tribeca yesterday I discovered we New York have our own Bean. pic.twitter.com/AbAs05A7vy

— jacinda_hues (@bluelily32) February 1, 2023

The new “bean” is located at 56 Leonard Street in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan.

at last complete: anish kapoor's newest ‘bean' nestles into the streets of new york. https://t.co/BSPdDkv2Ur pic.twitter.com/mASWAw5206

— designboom (@designboom) February 2, 2023

Anish Kapoor: Website | Instagram | Twitter
h/t: [ARTnews, Curbed]

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READ: Anish Kapoor Unveils New “Mini Bean” Sculpture in New York City

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