Beneath the industrial silhouettes of Beijing’s 798 Art District, renowned British sculptor Antony Gormley makes a powerful return with Body Buildings, his third solo exhibition at Galleria Continua. Running until April 14, 2025, the exhibition explores the profound relationship between the human body and architectural spaces, inviting visitors into an immersive journey that redefines perceptions of existence and urban life.
Body Buildings, Galleria Continua, Beijing, China 2024 – 25. Resting Place II, 2024, terracotta, 132 figures, dimensions variable. Photograph by Huang Shaoli.
The centerpiece of the exhibition, Resting Place II, is a sprawling installation composed of life-sized figures crafted from Chinese red clay, their raw forms echoing both fragility and resilience. As visitors navigate the intricate maze of bodies and voids, they become part of the work itself—immersed in a dynamic interplay between the organic and the architectural.
These figures, molded and fired in local kilns, embody not only the physicality of human existence but also the spiritual and cultural essence of the material. The clay evokes ancient creation myths from both East and West, bridging the divine breath that animates Adam in the Bible and the life-giving clay of the Chinese goddess Nüwa.
Surrounding Resting Place II are equally compelling works like Circuit and Ally. These sculptures expand the dialogue, drawing provocative parallels between urban infrastructure and the connective tissues of human relationships. Gormley’s deliberate use of clay and iron situates the body as both a builder of worlds and a product of its own constructs.
Body Buildings, Galleria Continua, Beijing, China 2024 – 25. Circuit, 2022, cast iron, 29.3 x 201.3 x 122.4 cm.
Photograph by Huang Shaoli.
Becoming Space Within Space
The experience of Body Buildings is profoundly physical. Visitors are encouraged to move, to pause, to reflect—each step offering a new perspective within Gormley’s sculptural world. The compressed corridors of clay figures create moments of both unease and wonder, compelling viewers to consider their place within the intricate structures of modern life.
This sense of immersion is no accident. As Mario Cristiani, director of Galleria Continua, explains:
“With Body Buildings, Antony Gormley confronts us with a condensed world—one in which the body is inseparable from the built environment. It’s an invitation to slow down and reimagine the spaces we inhabit, not just as physical constructs but as reflections of collective identity and purpose.”
Cristiani sees the exhibition as a culmination of Gormley’s ongoing exploration of space and humanity:
“While previous works, like Host, focused on primordial landscapes and natural materials, Body Buildings shifts to the constructed world. The clay, once formless, becomes the building block of civilization. It’s a profound evolution—from the Earth as it was, to the Earth as we’ve shaped it. Antony’s work asks us to acknowledge both the beauty and the burden of this transformation.”
Body Buildings, Galleria Continua, Beijing, China 2024 – 25. Resting Place II, 2024, terracotta, 132 figures, dimensions variable. Photograph by Huang Shaoli.
Body Buildings, Galleria Continua, Beijing, China 2024 – 25. Resting Place II, 2024, terracotta, 132 figures, dimensions variable. Photograph by Huang Shaoli.
Antony Gormley’s Vision of Humanity and Art
For over four decades, Antony Gormley has used sculpture to interrogate the relationship between the human body and its environment. From monumental public works like Angel of the North to deeply personal installations, his art resonates with universal themes of existence, identity, and transformation.
In Body Buildings, Gormley takes these themes further, presenting the body not as an isolated entity but as part of a collective organism. “Art,” Gormley once said, “is not about decoration but about revelation.” This ethos permeates the exhibition, as visitors become co-creators in the narrative, their movements through the space transforming static forms into lived experiences.
Rebuilding the Garden Within the City
What makes Body Buildings especially poignant is its reflection on the duality of human progress. The baked clay blocks—symbols of civilization—are arranged in ways that both celebrate and question humanity’s urban ambitions. For Cristiani, the exhibition is a call to action:
“Antony urges us to rebuild the ‘garden’ within our cities, to reclaim the spaces we’ve lost in the rush of urbanization. His works remind us that while we may build cities, we also shape each other within them. The labyrinth is not just a physical challenge—it’s a metaphor for finding balance between the natural and the constructed, between individuality and community.”
Body Buildings, Galleria Continua, Beijing, China 2024 – 25. Installation view. Photograph by Huang Shaoli.
A Timeless Invitation to Reflect
As visitors leave the exhibition, they carry with them more than the memory of striking sculptures. They leave with questions about their own role in shaping the spaces they inhabit—questions about what it means to exist in a world of endless construction, endless connection.
With Body Buildings, Antony Gormley doesn’t just present art; he creates a space for becoming—a space where we can pause, reflect, and perhaps reimagine the possibilities of the human condition.
Antony Gormley: Body Buildings
November 14, 2024 – April 14, 2025
Galleria Continua, Beijing
Address: 798 Art District, 2 Jiuxianqiao Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Comentários