Infinity and beyond: Ivan Navarro’s installation throws light on Masterpiece London
Luminous, illusory, monolithic: Ivan Navarro’s latest installation summons the enigmatic energy of prehistoric monuments like Stonehenge and Avebury – with a twist of fluorescent lime and 1970s psychedelia.
Impenetrable Room (2017) greets visitors to Masterpiece – the art fair opening today in Chelsea that brings together everything from antiquities to contemporary art and design. The beguiling boxes fitted with undulating neon tubing and mirrors create an infinity effect, but unlike other infinity installations, you’re kept on the outside of Navarro’s work. It gets at the very nature of creation. You can stand back and marvel, but you can’t fully grasp it.
Impenetrable Room, 2017, by Ivan Navarro.
‘I think of this almost as a fourth dimension, that is reflection or fiction,’ Navarro told us ahead of the fair. Unlike other works where he has mounted to the floor or wall, here ‘it was important to achieve this connection between illusion and the real space’. He explains, ‘That’s one of the reasons the pieces are freestanding, and you can tell that it’s a real volume and the effect of the mirror is a trick.’
The six identical, six by six foot containers – originally used for transporting musical instruments – have appeared in Navarro’s work before, but this new site-specific installation, commissioned by the fair and presented by Paul Kasmin Gallery, creates new resonances.
The works seem to resemble shipping containers, and their playful attitude could be taken as poking a little fun at the way of viewing art at a fair—walking around artworks to try to size them up. ‘One idea I like about this work is that you can show it in different configurations,’ he says. ‘Each box is independent from each other, so every time it’s shown in different places you can create different environments.’
Impenetrable Room, 2017, by Ivan Navarro
Navarro, who grew up in Santiago during Pinochet’s rule, is known for his interests in socio-political themes and interests in perception – but another inspiration is furniture. He used to work as an antique restorer and cites furniture as source for his shapes and forms, such as his series of electric chairs in 2005. ‘I’ve always been interested in furniture. I did some pieces connected to Rietveld, and I like Bauhaus and modern German and Dutch design.’
Impenetrable Room is a centrepiece of Masterpiece. And no doubt it’ll be a popular spot for selfies too. ‘Yes, that always happens,’ Navarro concedes. ‘But I don’t make it to be engaging. I make it as a visual experiment to play with different ideas and materials.’
But it won’t be the only way people interact with the art. ‘I always watch – it’s cool to hear what people say. And there’s something interesting people alway do: they see how much the pieces resist damage — some people kick them!’ If you do feel the urge to kick the art, just be aware Navarro might be lurking.
INFORMATION
Masterpiece London runs from 29 June – 5 July. For more information, visit the website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
ADDRESS
South Grounds
The Royal Hospital Chelsea
London SW3 4LW
Charlotte Jansen is a journalist and the author of two books on photography, Girl on Girl (2017) and Photography Now (2021). She is commissioning editor at Elephant magazine and has written on contemporary art and culture for The Guardian, the Financial Times, ELLE, the British Journal of Photography, Frieze and Artsy. Jansen is also presenter of Dior Talks podcast series, The Female Gaze.
-
A new limited-edition Rhodes piano and Gibson doubleneck guitar aim for the stars
The new Rhodes Mk8 Earth Edition piano and Gibson Jimmy Page EDS-1275 Doubleneck guitar revisit classic instruments at a price
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The new interior design trends we spotted at Salone del Mobile 2024
These are the interior design trends to look out for in 2024 and beyond, from soft upholstery to conversation pits and low dining
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
Tiffany & Co nods to its theatrical history with a surreal new campaign
Tiffany & Co campaign ‘With Love, Since 1837’ sees Dan Tobin Smith and set designer Rachel Thomas create an offbeat set
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Step into Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron's dreamy photographs in London
'Portraits to Dream In' is currently on show at London's National Portrait Gallery
By Katie Tobin Published
-
Gerhard Richter unveils new sculpture at Serpentine South
Gerhard Richter revisits themes of pattern and repetition in ‘Strip-Tower’ at London’s Serpentine South
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Meet the Turner Prize 2024 shortlisted artists
The Turner Prize 2024 shortlisted artists are Pio Abad, Claudette Johnson, Jasleen Kaur and Delaine Le Bas
By Hannah Silver Published
-
London gallery Incubator’s six emerging artists to see in spring 2024
Incubator's spring programme features six artists in consecutive two-week solo shows at the London, Chiltern Street gallery
By Mary Cleary Published
-
Kembra Pfahler revisits ‘The Manual of Action’ for CIRCA
Artist Kembra Pfahler will lead a series of classes in person and online, with a short film streamed from Piccadilly Circus in London, as well as in Berlin, Milan and Seoul, over three months until 30 June 2024
By Zoe Whitfield Published
-
Yinka Shonibare considers the tangled relationship between Africa and Europe at Serpentine South
Yinka Shonibare‘s ‘Suspended States’ at Serpentine South, London, considers history, refuge and humanitarian support (until 1 September 2024)
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Gavin Turk subverts still-life painting and says: ‘We are what we throw away’
Gavin Turk considers wasteful consumer culture in ‘The Conspiracy of Blindness’ at Ben Brown Fine Arts, London
By Rowland Bagnall Published
-
Dorothy Hepworth and Patricia Preece: Bloomsbury’s untold story
‘Dorothy Hepworth and Patricia Preece: An Untold Story’ is a new exhibition at Charleston in Lewes, UK, that charts the duo's creative legacy
By Katie Tobin Published