Idris Khan, Fragile, A permanent public art commission for 7 Howick Place 

Image © Idris Khan / Thierry Bal 2008

Khan, Fragile, A permanent public art commission for 7 Howick Place

A New Public Art Commission
Howick Place, Victoria, London, SW1
Curated by Artwise Curators, 2008

Artwise Curators is pleased to announce from 30 May 2008 a specially commissioned permanent public artwork, Fragile by Idris Khan, will be on view at 7 Howick Place.

Fragile is artist Idris Khan’s first permanent public artwork and is sited in the entrance to 7 Howick Place, a former Royal Mail Sorting office that has been newly converted into a space dedicated to art, fashion and design in London’s Victoria. Those familiar with Khan’s work will know his signature practice of layering images of photographs, paintings and film. This inherent process of repetition to reinforce a statement, sentiment or written word is here transformed into a collection of films inspired by the history of the building.

Comprising four individual films, Fragile will be played across a set of plasma screens embedded into the pavement outside the entrance to 7 Howick Place. This is the first ever outdoor installation of floor-mounted plasma screens in the UK, developed especially for the project by Flasma. By installing the screens in the ground, Khan encourages the viewer to look down and even walk over them; this action adding a unique sculptural feeling and a strange potency to what is seen.

Fragile celebrates the tradition of postal communication and considers the nature of letter writing and the permanence of the written word. What it means to send or receive personally written words, lost letters, the notion that once a letter leaves the author those words can never be retrieved are examined in these films through the depiction of letters and packages being treated and handled in different ways – at times abstractly, at others literally. The work also alludes to the creative activities that historically occurred on this site, and those that are yet to take place within Howick Place:

I became fascinated that Howick Place was a building that contained so many thoughts and words flooding through it daily and that its new function would also be a place of ideas and creativity…The films show me ripping, throwing and sketching and stamping played in reverse, slowed down or sped up. By manipulating time we enter into a utopian world whereby complicated or easy tasks look beautiful and mesmerizing – Idris Khan

For this commission, the artist collaborated with a set designer, architect, lighting designer and photographer to convert his studio into a 1950s post sorting office entirely constructed in cardboard, paper and tape to create a surreal environment in which the films were produced. Fragile is the first permanent moving-image public artwork approved by Westminster City Council and will be on view daily between 7am and 1am.

This commission was made possible thanks to the following partners:
Developers of Howick Place – Italian group of investors responsible for redeveloping the building.
A representative for the group said: ‘Howick Place presented the perfect opportunity for us to introduce to London our considered approach to redevelopment that transformed Milan over the past few years, by converting industrial plants and old buildings into vibrant business villages dedicated to fashion, art and design … A large development requires a landmark and in the case of Howick Place it is Idris Khan’s art installation. The commission opens up the building to the public and reflects the creative activity within it. Khan’s use of film is particularly appealing because the medium matches the character of the building – that being ever-changing - the material will remain fresh to the eye of the passer by. Khan matched our requirements for someone whose work is fresh, innovative and appealing to a large, diverse audience.’

Idris Khan – artist, represented by Victoria Miro Gallery, London; Yvon Lambert Gallery, New York.
Since graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2004, Khan has swiftly gained recognition as one of the most innovative artists and photographers of his generation. His works, which investigate ideas of authorship, history, memory and the beauty of repetition, have been the subject of solo shows at Victoria Miro Gallery in London, Yvon Lambert Gallery in New York and Iniva in London; his first solo museum exhibition opened at K20 in Düsseldorf, Germany earlier this year. For more information, please visit: www.victoria-miro.com and http://www.yvon-lambert.com/

Artwise Curators - curators and art project managers for this commission.
Artwise is a London based curating practice that commission and manage art projects in over 46 countries worldwide. Over the last 12 years, Artwise has achieved a wide range of arts projects spanning the public, private, commercial and museum worlds; including: initiating and managing large-scale commissions; curating temporary exhibitions; creating and managing private and selected corporate art collections; producing high-quality art publications; setting up prizes and award schemes; leading research and feasibility studies; and regular consultation exercises. In 2008 Artwise has been responsible for several art commissions for British Airways in Heathrow T5. For more information, please visit: www.artwisecurators.com

Squire and Partners - architects for the redevelopment of Howick Place.
The practice produces work that is refined, crafted and purpose made. Recognising that buildings have a substantial life expectancy, passing fashions are rejected in the search for a timeless quality that will sit well amongst London\\\'s architectural heritage. This unique form of contemporary design, informed by the prevailing urban character, has been successfully employed in some of the most sensitive locations in central London. A characteristic that underlies all Squire and Partners projects is a fascination with the expressive and poetic potential of materials - www.squireandpartners.com

Flasma – providing daylight readable screens inserted in paving, Flasma is the first company in the world to design and patent a product which features moving images in the floor - www.flasma.com


For further information and high resolution images please contact Project Curator: Deana Vanagan at deana@artwisecurators.com or call +44 (0)20 8563 9495

https://www.artwisecurators.com