The Kaleidoscopic Light-Sculpting World of Barbara Kasten

Who remembers the around-the-block queues for Olafur Eliasson's Tate Modern exhibitions? Firstly there was the Icelandic-Danish artist's 2003 installation Weather Project, which essentially saw the artist non-officially declare himself as an 'ambassador of the sun', then there was his 2019 In Real Life exhibition; a series of captivating installations that heightened more than just your senses. We're guessing you saw at least one of these enchanting works (quite frankly, who didn't) but in case you missed the buzz, another chance to witness the power of light and its effervescent qualities is presenting itself at Bexhill-on-Sea's De La Warr Pavilion next week thanks to the art of Barbara Kasten and her exhibition Site Lines.

Just as Freud and Bacon had oil paints, Kasten has glass, mirrors, metal and wood. Don't believe us? All we ask of you is to bear witness to what happens once such materials are in her hands, only then will the eighth and ninth wonders of the world be created. Using the inner structures of architectural spaces as a stage to magnify the potential of her art is where Kasten's talents lie - all of which allow her to manipulate an ever-changing reality, one solely constructed and conducted by the artist herself.

Marking her first institutional solo exhibition in the UK, Kasten's upcoming exhibition sees the artist play with spacial dimensions, colour and material to realise multiple sculptural installations, acting as one ‘interdisciplinary performance’ that sits between photography, sculpture, architecture, and painting. In short, Kasten's show grants the rare of opportunity of being able to dive into a painting and walk around, not just view it up close.

The site-based commission furthers Kasten's interest in the mechanisms and structures of how images are created, as seen via a series of coloured, acrylic beams, the forms of which echo the internal and external columns that support the Pavilion’s rectilinear geometries. There will also be a series of stage flats constructed out of various metals and mirrors which are imagined as movie screens with the main aim of providing a cinematic experience for visitors across the site as they unearth a choreographic showing of colour, light, and shadow as the weather - which dictates the atmospheric space - takes hold via simple changes in colour and mood.

Site Lines by Barbara Kasten will be on show at the De La Warr Pavilion until 1 September.