Anish Kapoor

“Svayambh” (2007) The title of this work, Svayambh, translates from Sanskrit as ‘born by itself’ or ‘self-generated’. The sculpture takes the form of a train but one without windows, seats or passengers. It is impenetrable, a forty-ton block of red wax, paint and Vaseline, moving across the Main Galleries of the Royal Academy. It squeezes through the archways, leaving lumps of colour, thick and uncomfortable. The smell penetrates the space as we watch this awkward kinetic sculpture slowly pass by.

“Sans titre” (2008) The void appears endless, broadening into its depth, and seems to encroach upon the observer, controverting conventional concepts of space. Amusing at the sensory level, this work also has a philosophical domain, inducing observers to think about how they relate to things and about existence itself.

“Idiocy” His sculptures distort shapes and explore the empty as an idea. It is an abstract art that evidences tensions between opposites: matter and spirituality, presence and absence or density and empty.

“ Shooting in the corner” (2008/09) The work Shooting into the Corner inhabits two worlds; it is both an artifact and a performative piece of art. It will change and evolve during the exhibition, as the splattered wax on the wall gradually builds up. Kapoor is using chance and time to make a huge drawing in the corner of the gallery. He has taken great care in choosing the sort of performers he wants to execute the shooting of the cannon, by auditioning drama students. There is a stockpile of pellets that the performers systematically fire across the gallery. The artwork is not complete without the performers as they work to a ritualistic rhythm.

“Yellow” (1999) In the quoted conversation, Kapoor is considering how the eye operates when viewing one of the works by American artist Barnett Newman (fig.3). Kapoor is fascinated with the way colour and painting work in a spatial and sculptural sense. In Yellow, Kapoor has produced a hybrid between painting and sculpture; it lies in between the two worlds of each art form. The installation of this piece is complex, as it is a huge six square-metre work. It is made from fibreglass and pigment, yet its construction and materials are difficult to understand, as it hovers on the wall, drawing us nearer. Kapoor delights in making us stop and become fixated by a colour. Yellow plays with our perceptions, optically and physically, as the colour yellow has a deep-rooted effect on us.

“Untitled” One of Kapoors works dealing with distorted reflection and the way in which we view ourselves. This altered perspective is a central theme displayed though the exhibition.