​A major new sculpture commission by the British artist Phyllida Barlow, as well as a large number of recent drawings.

This new commission at Studio Voltaire includes a series of works that directly respond to the gallery’s unique architecture. Dominating the space are two long structures that stretch from one end of the space to the other, mirroring the beamed ceiling. These barrier-like forms reference different structures we might encounter in everyday life, those that control or navigate us, along with other surrounding structures such as ramps, walls, barricades and sea groynes. Beside these interventions is a wall piece that has the quality of an enclosed balcony shrouded in blue tarpaulin; it is an object in a state of flux, it could be finished or still in the process. Another three smaller works based on security cameras hang from the beams, acting as observers of the strange environment.

Barlow’s recent work emerges from a 40-year practice in which she questions the nature and role of the sculptural object in contemporary culture. She makes use of an extensive, fluid vocabulary and has immense enthusiasm for engaging with the physical stuff of the world. Barlow makes her work from materials as varied as tarpaulin, wooden pallets, cement, polystyrene, card, plaster and chicken wire. After construction, many are painted with industrial or synthetic colours. Although abstract and often absurd, the sculptures have a strong sense of objectivity, they force us to consider relationships between the plastic, the body and narrative.