In a groundbreaking partnership, Royal Parks and the Serpentine Gallery showcased a series of Anish Kapoor’s most important stainless-steel works, which had never previously been shown together in London.
Anish Kapoor: Turning the World Upside Down was the first contemporary sculpture project to be sited in Kensington Gardens for over 25 years.
Kapoor’s sculptures play with the visitor’s desire to get close to them. While Sky Mirror, Red (2007) is placed in Kensington Gardens’ Round Pond, appearing to float on the water, Sky Mirror (2006) is viewed across the Gardens’ Long Water, seeming barely to touch the ground. Non-Object (Spire) (2007) vanishes into thin air, while C-Curve (2007) causes the visitor to pause and contemplate the often-overlooked formality of Kensington Gardens’ broad avenues, designed by Charles Bridgeman. Kapoor’s sculpture engages viewers directly, presenting their distorted and inverted reflections; in this way, visitors become implicit in the work, and can enter into a dialogue with them.
