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      David Moreno’s Anthropomorphic Foundations Support Cascading Villages

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      Detail of “Construcción en cabeza—Cabeza en construcción.” All images courtesy of the artist, shared with permission

      David Moreno’s Anthropomorphic Foundations Support Cascading Villages

      September 19, 2024

      Art

      Kate Mothes

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      From thin rods of steel, Barcelona-based artist David Moreno (previously) constructs towering houses and cascading villages that reflect the architecture of our lives. He often incorporates anthropomorphic, anatomical elements, suggesting skeletons or beating hearts.

      For example, “Construcción en cabeza—Cabeza en construcción,” which translates to “head construction—head under construction,” a hillside-like foundation takes the form of a face. And “Resumen 2020,” meaning “Summary 2020,” is a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, assuming the silhouette of a human skull.

      “Resumen 2020”

      Moreno’s sculptures alternate between rigidity and fluidity as he manipulates the thick wire into solid walls or curving arcs, such as in “La vie en rose.” Balanced carefully on columns of scaffolding, gabled structures cling somewhat precariously to their supports, referencing the sprawling, stacked hillside favelas like those in Rio de Janeiro.

      The artist is currently conceptualizing a new three-meter-wide installation for an architecture firm in Miami, and he has been scaling down his larger sculptures into gold and silver pendant designs. Check out more of Moreno’s work on Behance, and follow updates on Instagram.

      “Los Del Extrarradio”

      “Construcción en cabeza—Cabeza en construcción”

      “El dorado en expansion II”

      “Vanitas”

      “La vie en rose”

      “Conexion de catedral II”

      “Melodía Circular”

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    • 100 Shares119 Views

      in Art

      John Pai Transforms Steel Into Delicate, Airy Sculptures

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      “Shared Destinies” (2014), welded steel, 85.5 x 108 x 85 centimeters. Photos by Geoffrey Quelle. All images © John Pai, courtesy of
      the artist and Gallery Hyundai, shared with permission

      John Pai Transforms Steel Into Delicate, Airy Sculptures

      September 12, 2024

      Art

      Kate Mothes

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      For more than seventy years, John Pai’s artistic practice has delved into themes ranging from memory and the subconscious to international art forms, East Asian philosophy, and science. Starting in the early 1960s, he began working with steel, investigating both its technical and aesthetic potential through abstract shapes influenced by Constructivism.

      Pai is known for his meticulous and detailed metal sculptures, which weld thin strips in lattices and sheets to create delicate woven textures. A material we typically associate with heavy-duty construction is transformed into intimate works that appear as if they could float on air. Soft curves and gauzy surfaces suggest organic forms or textiles in contrast to industrial applications.

      “Risen, Fallen, Walken” (1987), welded steel, 120 x 109 x 54 centimeters

      Shared Destinies, the artist’s solo exhibition at Gallery Hyundai, presents nearly 40 pieces Pai has made throughout the past seven decades. Comprising welded steel sculptures, drawings, and paintings, the show illuminates the artist’s multidisciplinary approach to material, process, and form.

      In the work “Shared Destinies,” for example—which lends the show its name—layers of delicately welded steel suggest a woven basket. Ethereal pieces like “Invocation” bring to mind the undulating, woven wire sculptures of Ruth Asawa. The visible inner structures mirror the universal layers of the human psyche, time, and the artist’s journey of self-exploration.

      Shared Destinies continues through October 20 in Seoul. See more on the gallery’s website.

      “Involution” (1974), welded steel, 98 x 98 x 97 centimeters

      “Forgotten Rule” (1990), welded steel, 92 x 102.5 x 41.8 centimeters

      “Untitled” (1982), welded steel, 86 x 52 x 58 centimeters

      ‘Heaven and Earth’
      series, 1 to 7 (2024), welded steel, variable dimensions

      “Untitled 1970, Entitled 2021” (1970), welded steel, 92 x 92 x 38.9 centimeters

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