Marc Quinn, Life Breathes the Breath (In), 2012

“Violence and Serenity” by Marc Quinn

The first major solo museum presentation in Spain of British artist Marc Quinn at CAC Málaga will include a selection of new and recent works that continue Quinn’s investigation into some of the key concerns of our age.

Marc Quinn, History Painting (Istanbul, 11 January 2013)

Violence and Serenity curated by Fernando Francés, focusing on such wide-ranging themes as notions of identity, mapping and our biological and cultural evolution, Quinn’s work incorporates a range of media including sculpture, painting, tapestry, photography and drawing. This exhibition will centre around a new body of work entitled The Toxic Sublime, distorted landscapes that blur the boundaries between painting and sculpture.

Marc Quinn, Stealth Desire (Etymology), 2013

In these works, Quinn begins with a contradictory process: a sublime image of a beautiful sunrise, applied to a sheet of aluminium, is submitted to a process of “toxic” disintegration, alteration and decay through a layer of spray paint and repetitive sanding. As part of this lengthy process, Quinn adds in elements to his composition from the “real“ world of the street, such as chains or pothole covers, which are placed under the work during the sanding so that their ghostly outlines appear in the image.

Marc Quinn, The Beauty of Healing, 2014 (detail)

Moreover, holes, lines and striations in the surface of the work are amplified by a process of bending and folding the aluminium. The resulting paintings – although retaining the elements of a landscape or seascape, with their horizontal, tonal gradations – have the physical presence of sculpture, appearing more like discarded remnants from a physical disaster or simply gnarled detritus gathered from our immediate environment.

more. cacmalaga.eu|www.marcquinn.com