Cape Town

Wings first appeared in Wim Botha’s work in 2011, as part of Solipsis, an epic installation in the tradition of scenes of battle and conflict, made luminous through the artist’s combination of fluorescent lights and polystyrene. At the time he said:

Polystyrene has a very specific character; it is lightweight, fragile and pristinely pure. From a distance it could resemble freshly carved marble, or snow. Using heavy gauge power tools, like chainsaws and grinders, this soft material allows for a very spontaneous and gestural way of sculpting, an approach that is normally very difficult to achieve in sculpture due to its physicality and technical restraints.

Recurring throughout his work - in wood, wax, corrugated cardboard, bronze and on ink drawings paired with diachroic film - this image remains a key motif within the artist’s oeuvre for exploring the tensions of transcendence, corporeality and belief. In particular, the contrast between polystyrene and bronze is repeatedly engaged for its material conceptual connotation. Botha writes, ‘like marble, the whiteness of the polystyrene rejects all wavelengths of light - defensive, and inscrutable. On the other hand, the black surface of the bronzes have an infinite capacity to accept the whole spectrum of light without discrimination. This is where the title of prism comes from.’

In Studies for Bronze Botha presents prototypes for new bronze wings in their polystyrene form. Arranged as an immersive installation, with different pairs suspended across various levels within the space, the artist offers a showcase of the diverse inflections articulated through this form.

The exhibition opens Saturday 29 March, 10am to 1pm.