Nowhere
Jin Shan
靳山
Production date
2015
Object Detail
Media
plastic, steel
Measurements
209 x 118 x 85 cm
Notes
Nowhere (2015) is based on the ancient Greek sculpture Doryphoros, or Spear Carrier (c.440–50 BCA) by Polykleitos, which is known to us today through a Roman marble copy of the bronze original. Using a plastic compound (a ‘secret recipe’, says the artist), Jin Shan creates alarming distortions that render the original classical source almost unrecognisable. This male body appears to be exploding — plastic extrusions appear to be forcefully ejected through its very flesh; negative spaces within the figure can be seen through holes apparently ripped through the skin; fragments of the torso and a second face spring into the space surrounding the figure of the warrior. Moreover, the seams and joins of the sections of the mould are deliberately left visible, a challenge to the usual narratives of perfection.
Accession number
2016.028