Frieze 2023 Sculpture in London’s Regent’s Park

A pensive and reflective exhibition that maintains optimism in trying times

The eleventh edition of Frieze Sculpture brings enticing and compelling works to London’s Regent’s Park. Curated by Fatoş Üstek, the selected works are pensive and reflective of the current global zeitgeist while remaining hopeful and energetic. The sculptures present relevant social and personal themes including existentialism, gender, bodily autonomy and the human subconscious. Works of twenty-one artists from different cultures will remain in the English Gardens at Regent’s Park until 29 October 2023. The exhibition is free to the public.

Tony Matelli

Tony Matelli’s 2014 sculpture Sleepwalker has made its way to Regent’s Park this year as one of the most compelling works at Frieze Sculpture. The hyperrealist work plays upon our collective fear of the unconscious; it is representative of the ability to be present physically while being entirely somewhere else mentally. Sleepwalker is somehow simultaneously unnerving and comforting, depicting the frightening reality of a lack of control that coincides with releasing our inhibitions. It comments on feeling like an outlier while bringing a touch of familiarity to Frieze Sculpture that feels deeply human and personal.

Ghada Amer

My body my choice, the seminal sculpture by contemporary artist Ghada Amer, is blatant in its willingness to confront its audience with harsh realities. In spelling out the phrase “my body my choice,” the viewer is forced to contemplate the binary between masculinity and femininity, along with the dichotomy of political purpose in the East versus West. Creating a garden within the park itself introduces a lush element of serenity that when juxtaposed with the harsh, red lining of each character is both provocative and compelling. The piece is as aesthetically stimulating as it is mentally mesmeric.

Josh Smith

Josh Smith’s Friend marks the artist’s largest sculpture to date, depicting the Grim Reaper in a metallic medium. This piece, modeled from scans of maquettes that Smith designed from animal shells amongst other materials, is meditative of our own mortality and willingness to accept it. The Grim Reaper, faceless, enveloped in black and red hues, takes on whatever form the viewer desires it to. Smith’s work adds an element of existentialism to Frieze Sculpture that is reflective of human nature and the circle of life while still being visually stimulating, crafting a haunting and intimate ambiance.

Ayşe Erkmen

Ayşe Erkmen’s 2023 work Moss Column initially seems self-explanatory, but upon more thorough viewing there is more to the piece than what initially meets the eye. The five-meter tall column is composed of stone and etched in green moss, almost blending in with Regent’s Parks flora and fauna. At the top of the column lies a copper tube that gradually feeds the moss with water, causing the piece to develop more moss as the copper turns more and more green via oxidation. Part of this piece’s magic relies on the fact that it is constantly in flux, growing and changing in front of the audience’s eyes.

Yinka Shonibare CBE RA

British-Nigerian Artist Yinka Shonibare CBE RA’s Material (SG) IV is a vibrant and striking addition to Frieze Sculpture. The work resembles fabric flowing in the wind, frozen in time. There is a dreaminess about the piece that is both liberating and imaginative. It is reflective of the historical ability to change and evolve. The fabric that inspired the work became representative of African identity, though the design was originally Indonesian-inspired and was primarily sold by the Dutch. Due to the intersection of each of these three cultures that contributes to the fabric’s history, Material (SG) IV ruminates upon the way that we are all connected to one another. It is unifying and uplifting.

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