Sean Scully Will Create Massive Site-Specific Sculptures for His First Danish Solo Show in Thorvaldsens Museum

Bertel Thorvaldsen was one of the most celebrated sculptors in Denmark. When he returned to the country, in 1838, after doing the Grand Tour in Italy, a whole flotilla of wooden ships came to greet him and celebrate his return. 

Four years after the sculptor's death in 1844, Denmark opened Thorvaldsens Museum in his honour, wholly dedicated to his work. This fall, the world-renowned sculptor Sean Scully will show site-specific sculptures created for the museum in his first Danish solo show Material World.

Honouring Denmark's Naval History

"I thought a wonderful way to interact with the museum would be to make sculpture out of wood, various colored oaks, which makes an oblique reference to the great Naval history of Denmark," says Scully. 

"Other materials I've used include marble, which makes a direct reference to Thorvaldsen, as well as found materials - and of course enlivening the museum with paintings."

Three works were created especially for the museum: The large-scale pieces include a 29-foot sculpture in the museum's front hall, a 13-foot sculpture made of Italian black marble from Carrara, and a 25-foot piece made of local Danish oak for the museum's entrance square. Along with Scully's iconic paintings, the exhibition also features a number of other sculptures and drawings from his oeuvre.

Oak Stacks, created for the museum's square, feature three tall sculptures of staked Danish oak, offering a sensuous experience to the public. The work can be experienced during the first months of 2023, the year in which Copenhagen will be the World Capital of Architecture. 

A Meeting across Time and Space

In the Sean Scully Material World exhibition, two major artists, Sean Scully and Bertel Thorvaldsen come together over time and space. Scully and Thorvaldsen both want to express the fundamental human emotions by combining the physical and spiritual components into a type of imagery that is universal, despite their disparate life circumstances and historical contexts.

Both artists draw inspiration from ancient art, but they both interpret it in light of their respective contemporary eras. Their meeting will expand the understanding of their work and provide audiences with an outstanding experience. 

Sean Scully (b.1948, Ireland) first experimented with painting and printmaking before moving to sculpture and photography. His paintings are renowned for their unusual coloristic intensity and straightforward, abstract shapes that he translates into sculptures as well. They are composed of horizontal and vertical structures made of various materials, including glass, zinc, wood, and stone. 

Distinguished for creating an ongoing dialogue between the intimate and the monumental in his works, Scully raised his profile through solo shows in the USA and Europe in the 1980s. He has received many honours, and both public and private collections throughout the world feature his artwork.

Material World at Thorvaldsens Museum

The exhibition Sean Scully: Material World will be on view at Thorvaldsens Museum in Copenhagen from September 2nd, 2022, until March 5th, 2023.

Featured image: Sean Scully - Oak Stacks 2022 © Sean Scully. Photo/ Jens Lindhe