The Ghanaian artist El Anatsui is to unveil a new body of bottle-top works to UK audiences today (4 February). His shimmering metal tapestries made from flattened bottle tops propelled him to international fame in the early 2000s; one such work was hung outside the Arsenale at the 2007 Venice Biennale to great acclaim. Last year Anatsui won the Golden Lion for lifetime achievement at the Biennale.
But the new sculptures, which are on show at the October Gallery in London (until 2 April), mark a departure from earlier works created using the same materials and include distinctly figurative elements. Warrior (2015) depicts a person caught mid-hop holding spear-like weapons, while a foetus appears to float on the left side of Dzi II (2015). The new body of work is titled Dzi, which means search, sing, heart and rebirth in Anatsui’s native language of Ewe.
“El uses bottle tops almost like a painter,” says Elisabeth Lalouschek, the director of October Gallery. “It’s like an alchemical process of turning water into wine.” The new group of works was first shown at the Kunstbanken in Norway last summer.
Meanwhile, Anatsui is also creating a bottle-top installation for the Marrakesh Biennale, which opens on 24 February (until 8 May). The new work is due to be installed at the Badii Palace. Organised by Reem Fadda, a curator for the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, Not New Now will focus on the legacies of decolonisation.
