Metallic Crystals Sprout from Daniel Arsham’s Eroded Sculptures That Warp the Passage of Time

“Unearthed Bronze Eroded Melpomene” (2021). All images courtesy of Yorkshire Sculpture Park, shared with permission

Six of Daniel Arsham’s eroded sculptures are scattered across Yorkshire Sculpture Park as part of a spacious outdoor exhibition that explores the inevitability of decay. Referencing both pop culture and art history, Relics in The Landscape features massive works of patinaed bronze embedded with patches of metallic, crystal-esque forms. “As history progresses, all objects become antiquated, and in some way, they all become ruins or relics, disused or buried. In 1,000, years everything that we own will inevitably become one of those things,” he says. “I don’t particularly see that as having an apocalyptic quality – it’s sort of just the march of time moving on.”

Referring to the works as “future relics,” Arsham (previously) collapses time and tradition. In “Bronze Eroded Venus of Arles,” for example, he reinterprets the 1st-century BCE statue of Aphrodite with gem-like corrosion, showing the progression of both growth and decay. Other sculptures include more contemporary subject matter, like “Bronze Eroded Astronaut,” which recreates the iconic image of Neil Armstrong during the Apollo 11 Moonwalk. While preserving such a historic moment in cast metal, the sculpture is spotted with pockets of decomposition that disintegrate the explorer’s suit.

Relics in The Landscape is on view through September 30, 2023. Find more from Arsham on Instagram.