Franz West: Sisyphos sculptures
Gagosian, Davies Street, London, UK
June 8 – July 27, 2018
In Greek mythology, Sisyphus (or Sisyphos) was the first king of Ephyra. He was punished by Zeus for his deceitfulness and pride, forced to roll a heavy boulder up a steep hill, only for it to roll back down as it neared the top, repeating this action for eternity.
The current exhibition at the Gagosian in Davies Street, London, by Franz West (Vienna, 1947 – Vienna, 2012) references this myth. I wanted to share it because the sculptures are beautiful, and I particularly enjoyed the photos we captured during our performance in the art space.
Belonging to a generation of artists exposed to Actionist and Performance Art of the 1960s and ’70s, Franz West rejected the idea of a passive relationship between artwork and viewer. He explored the dichotomy between private and public, action and reaction, both inside and outside the gallery, and used everyday materials and imagery to examine art’s relationship to social experience.
The Sisyphus myth that the artist engages with in this exhibition reflects the unrelenting frustration of the creative process—the struggle inherent in all artistic pursuits, familiar to artists and creative people alike.
Franz West’s unconventional sculptures often require audience participation, making them perfect examples of artworks The Art Berries enjoy performing with—those in which the artist encourages interaction and does not see our performance as interference. That said, I believe everyone should be free to interact with art and enjoy it as they wish, as long as the artworks are respected. This is indeed one of the missions of The Art Berries.
For the photos displayed here, we played with the notions of concealment and exposure, themes frequently explored by West throughout his career. By lying on the floor, we also seem to take a brief rest from the Sisyphean creative struggle—if only for a moment.
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