Renowned Artist Matthew Barney Combines Copper Etchings, Surreal Sculpture, and Film in Stunning UK Exhibition
Credit: Matthew Barney
American artist and film director Matthew Barney offers a unique perspective on the world around us. His innovative sculptures, etchings, and film work explore mythology – in particular that of North America – biology, geology, and geography.
His work has a way of subverting expectations, presenting the world to the viewer in ways they’ve never seen before. Surreal shapes loom around familiar iconography, while impossible structures spark awe and intrigue.
Barney’s most recent exhibition, Redoubt, was his first solo UK show in over ten years. The exhibit explored humanity’s dynamic relationship to the natural world through sculpture, copper etchings, and film.
Striking Copper Etchings
Credit: Matthew Barney, Mark Blower
Installation view of Matthew Barney Redoubt at Hayward Gallery, 2021
Throughout the American artist’s exhibit were over 40 copper engravings and electroplated copper plates. Producing these pieces is unique and involves an ‘electrifying’ process, a steady hand, and a great deal of patience.
Some of the most striking copper structures took everyday objects and transformed them into something otherworldly. It can be seen in the example featured above. Traditional shutter windows have been electroplated, elevating an otherwise mundane scene to new heights.
Through the shutters of the window frame, an intricate nature scene has been etched into the surface of the polished metal. Here, an enchanting nature scene has been etched into typically industrial material.
Surreal Nature-Machine Sculptures
Credit: Matthew Barney, courtesy of Gladstone Gallery, New York, and Brussels
Industrial weaponry? Fragments of a forest tree? Something in between? These sculptures fuse both manmade and natural elements to produce surreal, imposing structures. They’re built using a combination of traditional casting methods and modern printing techniques.
Installation view of Matthew Barney Redoubt at Hayward Gallery, 2021
The result is pieces that deny most expectations. They are at once a natural structure made from metal and an industrial weapon that consists of nature. This contradictory marriage of themes and materials can be found throughout Barney’s Redoubt.
The viewer is left contemplating our place within nature and the role we play in protecting it.
A Feature-Length Film Project
Credit: Matthew Barney, Mark Blower
Installation view of Matthew Barney Redoubt at Hayward Gallery, 2021
Among the physical exhibits at Matthew Barney’s Redoubt was a feature-length movie exploring nature themes, American political narratives, and indigenous culture. The artist appears in the film itself and can be seen creating the copper etchings that are featured throughout his exhibition.
The work was described as ‘breathtakingly beautiful’ by the New York Times, and for a good reason. Through idiosyncratic choreography, striking visual tableaux, and almost no dialogue, the film navigates stories of cosmology, Diana and Actaeon, and American politics.
The film ran for more than 2 hours with almost no words exchanged between the actors. The striking scenes and images will no doubt stay with their audiences for many years to come.
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