NANCY Rubins is set to exhibit her exorbitant sculptures at Gagosian Gallery in her debut London solo show on Wednesday, February 7. Diversifolia will feature new work, including four large-scale sculptures constructed from animal sculptures and toys.
Agrifolia Major by Nancy Rubins. Photograph: Gagosian Gallery
Diversifolia indicates a single species of plant which possesses a variety of leaves, looking at Rubin’s work you can clearly see where the analogy comes from. Found objects find their place in her creations, sprouting and contorting haphazardly, suspended and bound tightly together by cables. Her sculptures draw fascination by challenging gravity, the sheer scale of her work creates tension for the viewer as it teeters precariously over you.
Crocodylius Philodendrus by Nancy Rubins. Photograph: Gagosian Gallery
Despite their figurative shape, Rubins’ approach towards her structures are strictly cemented in aesthetics, she draws her inspiration from the materiality of the objects, fusing together objects and giving new life to what was once scrap.
Portrait of Nancy Rubins by Brian Guido. Photograph: Gagosian Gallery
Rubins explains, “I am interested in the balance, the engineering and tenuousness of the objects, as well as the dynamic tension and energy… a continuum starts happening with one piece attached to another.”
Hog de la Ivy by Nancy Rubins. Photograph: Gagosian Gallery
In all her work, Rubins playfully challenges the boundaries of traditional modernist sculpture. She deconstructs and rearranges the aesthetic of something found and unwanted, ignoring it’s intended function – and transforms it into a puzzle piece in her monumental creations, binding the pieces together into one elegant form.
by Faye Leung
Diversifolia will run from Wednesday, February 7 – April 14, 2018 at Gagosian Gallery, 6-24 Britannia Street London WC1X 9JD