David Altmejd Unleashes 'The Serpent' at White Cube New York
The show delves into the interplay of order and chaos.
David Altmejd’s latest exhibition, The Serpent, now on view at White Cube New York through April 19, extends his ongoing exploration of nature’s fluid hierarchies. Anchored by a monumental serpent sculpture composed of interlinked human heads, the show delves into the interplay of order and chaos, creation and transformation.
At the gallery’s entrance, “The Serpent” rises to meet its conjurer, “Snake Charmer,” in a tense dialogue between maker and made. The work mutates along its length, its heads shrinking and morphing into rabbits—symbols of trickster energy in Jungian psychology as per the gallery. This shapeshifting impulse carries into the upper gallery, where swans and nymphic figures engage in an ecstatic, musical ritual. Sculptures like “The Prometheus Chord” and “The Lydian Chord” reimagine swans as musical instruments wielded by enigmatic, rock-star-like figures, while three life-size bronze Nymphs appear suspended mid-movement.
Altmejd’s world thrives on paradox: raw sculptural surfaces disrupt polished forms, heads bearing musical notes seem to emit sound and mythological references merge with subconscious imagery. Head to White Cube’s website for more information.
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