The 244th annual Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, which is held until August 12, features a site specific architectural installation designed by architect and artist Chris Wilkinson, Director at Wilkinson Eyre Architects. Positioned in the center of the RA’s Annenberg Courtyard, From Landscape to Portrait is a 12 meter-long sculpture based on a series of 11 wooden artist’s frames, supported upon a timber structure clad in polished stainless steel. More images and information on the installation after the break.
The sequential twist of the frames through 90 degrees from landscape (horizontal format) to portrait (vertical format), helps create a structure with a powerful sense of movement. The colour, materials and proportion of From Landscape to Portrait have been carefully considered to relate to the Courtyard’s surroundings, creating a focal point for the entrance to the Royal Academy. In addition, the motif of the rotating frame has been adopted as the visual identity for the Summer Exhibition 2012 Marketing Campaign.
Chris Wilkinson’s installation is the latest piece in the Programme of Sculpture in the Courtyard at Burlington House and follows last year’s Coloring Book (2011) sculpture by Jeff Koons Hon. RA.
Wilkinson said: “It’s a great honor to have had a role in developing the content of the exhibition and also help shape visitors’ first experience of the show with From Landscape to Portrait. The relationship between art and architecture has been a long-standing interest of mine. With such a fantastic range of ideas being exhibited, it made perfect sense to explore the dialogue between the disciplines.”
