For the exhibition Body Buildings, held at the Beijing branch of Galleria Continua until 14 April 2025, Mario Cristiani, co-founder of the gallery, shares his reflections on the artist’s work and the way bodies and space continue to be the focus of his research.
In the words of Cristiani, who has long collaborated with Gormley and supported his engagement with non-Western realities, the relation between his work and China is presented, as well as the artist’s sensitivity to Asian cultures and philosophies, which stemmed from his trips to study Buddhism in the East in the 1970s.
Veronica Di Geronimo: A large part of Antony Gormley’s artistic production explores the human body as a vehicle for connecting the individual with the surrounding space. How does the exhibition Body Buildings fit into this discourse and what new questions does it raise when compared with previous exhibitions?
Mario Cristiani: If you ask me, I think the issue is more about space and ‘bodies’ than the human body itself. The central question is: what is art’s space in the universe? The question is asked in an absolute sense but, of course, it’s formulated by a human being. This is why the question can be unintentionally misleading.
Gormley’s research is not limited to investigating the human body, but the body as that of an ‘artist’ and, in this sense, an artistic space. His reflection develops from the relationship between space, matter and art in relation to our being—both physical and non-physical—within the universe. Gormley’s gaze privileges essence over appearance. Rather than outward appearance, his focus is on the inner dimension. His works don’t simply represent the body but make it clear that each individual represents a space and that there are relationships between spaces.
The sculpture and the way it is placed in space, whether this is closed or open, show that the ‘body’ cannot be represented in the traditional sense but, through it, we can perceive ourselves as space in movement. Sculpture becomes the instrument with which we measure our otherness in relation to it. Gormley’s work helps us become aware of our potential to connect with other spaces, whether inner or outer.
With the exhibition Body Buildings, Gormley brings forward elements of continuity from his earlier research, but also introduces new aspects, particularly in the relationship between sculpture and ink drawing. The relationship between bodies is the central theme, developed following the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and the limits imposed on mobility and physical contact between strangers.
Another significant element is the double sculpture made for the first time in my gallery in San Gimignano. Here, Gormley explores the relationship between two mutually supportive, intertwined bodies, highlighting the reciprocal necessity to maintain an open, connected position. This concept is also visible in the work Double (2014), where two figures meet and support each other, or in the sculpture Circuit, where two bodies are connected with a single line.
This research departs from self-reference, an aspect that is not only increasingly present in the art world, but also in everyday life. The element of horizontality, fundamental to this exhibition, is found in works such as Resting Place II, as well as in the drawings, manifesting a deep need to touch and acknowledge our ‘being earth’. This is also reflected in the materiality of the cast iron works, which anchor the figures to the ground, evidencing their connection to both the material and the space in which they are located.
The main work in the exhibition, Resting Place II, presents an inverted image of the human figure, usually depicted in a totemic manner, from both a formal and a metaphorical point of view. Here, on the other hand, the body is conceived as a primordial dwelling. How do you interpret this concept and how do you think it relates to the existential reflections running through Gormley’s work?
Here, I’d also like to offer a different interpretation. Gormley’s works are not totemic, but rather an experimental investigation into how our perception and sensitivity relate to the work and, through it, to ourselves.
It’s true that many people recognise Gormley’s work as totemic, but this only partially explains his research. His works, often characterised by a static, massive position, are never static in their meaning. Anyone who analyses his work carefully enough will understand how his research has constantly evolved. The totemic aspect is only a small part of his journey.
Antony Gormley, both as an artist and as an individual alert to life and the world around us, has always adopted a strong experimental and empirical component in the development of his work. It’s for this reason that his research starts from himself, from his being the ‘space of art’ in the universe. This principle underlies his works as open questions about our cosmic being.
Even in this project for Galleria Continua, one of the fundamental distinctions of his research emerges: the difference between sculpture and statue—a distinction marking what is both contemporary and timeless, and what is not. Not all statues are sculptures, and not all works that we call sculptures are actually statues. The fact that his works may be in ‘still positions’ does not mean that they are static but invites viewers who relate to them to become more aware.
In this sense, Resting Place II is not a celebration of the human form, but a reflection on our presence in space. Gormley invites viewers to observe his works from different perspectives: lying down next to them, immersing themselves in the terracotta sculptures, observing them from above or walking beside them. The perception of the work changes depending on the point of view, making the experience and reflection on our potential, suspended between stillness and movement, even more intense.
I remember that at the opening of the exhibition, Antony himself commented with enthusiasm and surprise on this experience of shared perception, emphasising that his works should not simply be looked at, but experienced.
Drawings from the Singularity X and Lux series are also displayed, which portray the birth of astral matter and inner spaces of light and darkness, respectively. How are these works in dialogue with the exploration of the body and space that can be found in the sculptures?
When we discussed this exhibition with Stephen Greenblatt and I showed him the catalogue of the exhibition I had organised in Beijing, we talked about how the current show both continued and expanded upon Gormley’s previous research.
The 2018 exhibition also featured a drawing evoking the beginning of life on earth, a story shared by both Western and Eastern traditions, particularly that of China. It is as if, after the universal flood depicted in Host and the receding of the waters, came the birth of cities through the same elements—earth and the breath of life—which are referred to as the original elements of life in both Eastern and Western sacred texts.
The red terracotta of China, as well as that found in other parts of the world, with its chemical components, testifies to our being part of a star—living beings composed of cosmic matter. The drawings indicate our form and our suspension between heaven and earth, reinforcing the link between the invisible and the tangible, between nothingness and matter.
Terracotta and iron, the materials used to create the works in the exhibition, not only recall its theme but also possess a profound symbolic and cultural meaning. Their not very malleable, solid nature seems to evoke a dimension of resilience and permanence. In what way do you see a connection between the artist’s philosophical research and the choice of these materials?
I think I have already addressed this, to some extent, in the previous answer. But if I could add anything, I’d say that the choice of these materials, in their simplicity and essential quality, as well as the form Antony gives them, simultaneously express both strength and fragility.
The terracotta works are united by nothing more than the force of gravity, inviting the public to reflect on how they are situated in relation to these unstable, fragile elements. One wrong movement could cause a work to collapse and break.
In contrast, the iron works, although weighing hundreds of kilos, appear light due to their positioning in the gallery. This play between weight and lightness is fundamental to Gormley’s work and calls for a broader reflection on existence.
Not only are we made of matter, but also of imagination. Paraphrasing Shakespeare, Antony seems to say that ‘our dreams are made of star matter’. In my opinion, Gormley’s work expresses this poetry.
For this reason, I asked Luca Massimo Barbero, the world’s foremost expert on the work of Lucio Fontana, to curate the dialogue between the works of Fontana and Gormley in the Olivetti space at the Venice Biennale in 2022, the 59th International Art Exhibition. This can also be found in the texts by Hou Hanru and Stephen Greenblatt in the catalogue to be published by Skira.
Gormley has established a long-standing dialogue with China, which started in 1995 thanks to the British Council, when he visited the country in order to create a version of the work Field dedicated to the Asian continent. During this process, Galleria Continua played a significant role as a bridge between the artist and the Chinese context. How do you think Gormley’s work fits into the Chinese cultural and artistic landscape, and how has the Chinese public received and interpreted his work over the years?
Thank you for this question. Hanru discusses this well in his essay, which is included in the catalogue that will be ready for the next Hong Kong fair on 26 March. I started working with Antony Gormley in Beijing on a continuous basis for his 2009 exhibition, Another Singularity, in the gallery I co-founded in 1990 in San Gimignano. But I have known Antony directly since 2004, when he participated in the non-profit project for the Associazione Arte Continua, which I am still president of.
At the end of this project seven sculptures, created with the participation of citizens, where donated to the city and are still permanently exhibited there. As Gormley said, these sculptures are like acupuncture pins symbolically placed in the sensitive nerve points of the ‘city body’. The pixelated bodies of the citizens who participated in the project were a way to create a psycho-affective map of the city of Poggibonsi, for the Arte all’Arte project.
Right from the beginning, one of the dimensions of his work has been inspired by the healing power of art, a reference to the important medical culture of China’s civilisation.
Perhaps it is also for this reason that Asian Field, made in 2003, is now in the M+ Museum in Hong Kong. The work was created in terracotta with the participation of around 300 people of all ages from the village of Xiangshan, located north-east of the city of Guangzhou in Guangdong Province, China. Together, some 200,000 small terracotta figures were created, resulting in one of Gormley’s most significant installations in Asia.
Gormley has always shown a deep knowledge of and respect for Chinese culture. This is perhaps why the public, from visitors to collectors, holds him in such high regard—even in China.
This is also why one of the dreams that I’ve been working on for some time now is the opportunity to realise one of Gormley’s projects in the Forbidden City itself. It would be an extraordinary dialogue between the thousand-year history of China and the research of one of the most significant artists of our time.
Antony Gormley. Body Buildingins, Galleria Continua, Beijing, China, 14.11.2024 – 14.04.2025
Antony Gormley (London,1950) is one of the most influential contemporary artists, known for his sculptures and public works investigating the relationship between the human body and space. Educated in archaeology, anthropology and art history at Trinity College, Cambridge, he went on to study sculpture at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design and Goldsmiths College. Imposing figures are predominantly used in his work to question the condition of human beings and their presence in the world, addressing existential and philosophical questions in the process.
After receiving the Turner Prize in 1994, Gormley consolidated his status as an internationally renowned artist. Over the years, he has been awarded several prizes and honorary titles, and his works are included in prestigious public collections worldwide.
images: Antony Gormley, «Body Buildings», exhibition views, Galleria Continua / Beijing, 2024, Courtesy: the Artist and GALLERIA CONTINUA, Copyright: © the Artist, Photographer: Huang Shaoli
