New Dawn
London, 2017
Fibreglass, Brass, LED, Custom Electronics. 125 x 176 x 2.5cm
New Dawn responds to our problematic relationship with technology and subsequent mediated experience of contemporary reality.
Characterised by an ambient, cinematic quality, New Dawn encourages a moment of reflection that recollects the paradox of Plato’s Cave, engaging in a play of shadows which impairs our ability to authenticate.
The sculpture is comprised of two windows displaying dynamic patterns of light and shadow dappling across its surface that suggest leaves falling or being gently blown in the breeze. Only on circling the artwork are its inner workings revealed and the illusion of absence shattered; each slat features a row of concealed LEDs that project light onto its subjacent slat. Thus we are lulled into its spectacle and then sharply made aware of its artificiality, reminding us of our place in the world in contrast to technology, but also our inherent alignment to it.
New Dawn was shown as part of Counterparts, United Visual Artists’ first solo exhibition at Bitforms Gallery, New York 2018-2019.
