Yinka Shonibare CBE: Suspended States – a 'stunning' show
Serpentine Gallery exhibition touches upon slavery, colonialism and global warming
In the 1990s, the British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare had an "epiphany", said Ben Luke in the Evening Standard. He discovered that the colourful batik fabrics sold in Brixton Market, which he had always associated with West Africa, were in fact the product of complicated historical exchanges. They were based on Indonesian textiles shipped to Europe and thence "industrially produced" in Holland: they only arrived in Africa through colonial commerce.
Ever since, he has used this material to create work that explores the complexities of imperial history, and to question notions of "cultural authenticity". He has wrapped effigies of figures from British history in batik, and used the fabric to create "wind sculptures" – sails which evoke the principal motor of the slave trade. His trick, however, is to make it all look bright and joyous.
This new show at the Serpentine brings together a number of recent installations and sculptures, all using his "signature fabric". It touches on everything from slavery and colonialism to global warming and the refugee crisis.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It's "classic Yinka" – a show marrying "immediate visual allure" to "disquieting meaning". Shonibare's work is always "beautifully distinct", said Laura Cumming in The Observer. Even if he hasn't literally made these pieces himself (he has been disabled since adolescence), they are unmistakably his creations. It's a blessing and a curse, however. A work entitled "The War Library" sees 5,000-plus volumes on conflicts past and present bound in Shonibare's trademark textiles and exhibited in a huge bookshelf. "Stunning" as it is, he has made very similar pieces before. And it works in terms of rather obvious generalisations: the artist is "against colonialism, racism, imperialism, war". Elsewhere, he has made fibreglass copies of statues depicting figures from British imperial history, including Queen Victoria and Churchill, in his "gorgeously recognisable" batik patterns – again, a tactic he has deployed before. You're left feeling that he has been doing exactly the same thing for 30 years, and that "nothing – and I mean nothing – has changed".
Perhaps that's because it's still so relevant, said Jonathan Jones in The Guardian. By turning "patriotic statues" into objects that would be unimaginable to the people they commemorate, he has created "a witty, weirdly beautiful conclusion" to the furious debate around public sculpture that has raged since 2020. The conclusion to the show, "Sanctuary City", is especially "moving". Scale models of Aleppo Cathedral, the UN headquarters and the Bibby Stockholm barge, among others, are lit from within to reveal interiors patterned with his trademark fabrics. All these sanctuaries are at best ambiguous symbols – yet they "glow with the idea of protecting vulnerable people". We should be thankful for Shonibare – a gentle artist who "encourages us to think a bit".
Serpentine South Galley, London W2 (020-7402 6075 ). Until 1 September
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - November 23, 2024
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - qualifications, tax cuts, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Long summer days in Iceland's highlands
The Week Recommends While many parts of this volcanic island are barren, there is a 'desolate beauty' to be found in every corner
By The Week UK Published
-
The Democrats: time for wholesale reform?
Talking Point In the 'wreckage' of the election, the party must decide how to rebuild
By The Week UK Published
-
Long summer days in Iceland's highlands
The Week Recommends While many parts of this volcanic island are barren, there is a 'desolate beauty' to be found in every corner
By The Week UK Published
-
The Great Mughals: a 'treasure trove' of an exhibition
The Week Recommends The V&A's new show is 'spell-binding'
By The Week UK Published
-
Damian Barr shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The writer and broadcaster picks works by Alice Walker, Elif Shafak and others
By The Week UK Published
-
Aston Martin Vanquish: 'the best Aston Martin full stop'?
The Week Recommends The third-generation Vanquish 'offers spectacular performance'
By The Week UK Published
-
Her Lotus Year: Paul French's new biography sets lurid rumours straight
The Week Recommends Wallis Simpson's year in China is less scandalous, but 'more interesting' than previously thought
By The Week UK Published
-
Say Nothing: 'sensational' dramatisation of Patrick Radden Keefe's bestselling book
The Week Recommends The series is a 'powerful reminder' of the Troubles
By The Week UK Published
-
Joy: fertility film starring Bill Nighy offers 'dose of seasonal cheer'
The Week Recommends The film about the invention of the fertility treatment is 'unassuming' but may 'sneak up on you'
By The Week UK Published
-
Ed Park's 6 favorite works about self reflection and human connection
Feature The Pulitzer Prize finalist recommends works by Jason Rekulak, Gillian Linden, and more
By The Week US Published