Bold Tendencies

Painted in aluminium-rich paint (a standard roof finish in New York), Richard Wentworth’s Agora covers the entire surface of the car park. Mirroring the ever-changing weather conditions on site, the reflective design unifies and activates the space.

The work pursues Wentworth’s long held passion for the meeting point between spatial conditions and the stories and characters that bring our society to life. Agora, a Greek word for ‘gathering place’, also shares an etymological root with ‘gregarious’, highlighting the work’s ambition to spark points of connection and dialogue for the many people who come to visit.

Evocative of the decorative energy of Southern Europe’s traditional paving and textiles, Agora suggests the twirling parades of city centres as much as spontaneous ‘desire lines’ found on natural footpaths. While we stand on Agora,  probably in conversation, we can also witness the city and landscape which harbours us.

Kindly Supported by Johnstone’s Trade

Richard Wentworth has played a leading role in New British Sculpture since the end of the 1970s. His work, encircling the notion of objects and their use as part of our day-to-day experiences, has altered the traditional definition of sculpture as well as photography. By transforming and manipulating industrial and/or found objects into works of art, Wentworth subverts their original function and extends our understanding of them by breaking the conventional system of classification. The sculptural arrangements play with the notion of ready-made and juxtaposition of objects that bear no relation to each other. Whereas in photography, as in the ongoing series Making Do and Getting By, Wentworth documents the everyday, paying attention to objects, occasional and involuntary geometries as well as uncanny situations that often go unnoticed.

Richard Wentworth (b. 1947, Samoa) lives and works in London. Major solo presentations include Black Maria with Gruppe, Kings Cross (2013), Whitechapel Gallery (2010); 52nd Venice Biennale (2009); Tate Liverpool (2005); Artangel (2002); Bonner Kunstverein (1998); Stedelijk Museum (1994); Serpentine Gallery (1993).