DANIEL ARSHAM
“As history progresses, all objects become antiquated and in some way,
they all become ruins or relics, disused or buried. In 1000 years everything
that we own will inevitably become one of those things. I don’t particularly
see that as having an apocalyptic quality – it’s sort of just the march of time
and moving on.”
“As history progresses, all objects become antiquated and in some way, they all become ruins or relics, disused or buried. In 1000 years everything that we own will inevitably become one of those things. I don’t particularly see that as having an apocalyptic quality – it’s sort of just the march of time and moving on.”
Daniel Arsham’s work explores the zeitgeist and feeds off pop culture. His depictions of eroding sneakers, cassette players, Polaroid cameras, and Pokémon are an expression of his artistic concept of “fictional archaeology.” He explores the meaning of these objects as future relics of our present, thus reversing the conventional process of archaeological work.
In the case of BLUE CALCITE ERODED HEAD OF LUCILLE, Arsham uses a replica of an ancient bust of Lucilla, daughter of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, from whose surface he grows gemstones. The work is an exploration of our understanding of time and timelessness. The original bust is carefully preserved in the Louvre – an attempt to save it for eternity. Here it is in decay, and yet gemstones sprout from its ruptures as if the past is making room for something new.