As one enters the opening courtyard to the Royal Academy one is struck by the sculpture ‘A Tall Tree and the Eye’ – a tumbling tower of silver balls which reflect and distort the image of the surrounding square.
Anish Kapoor’s exhibition is a sensation. It is a sensual, tactile and visually engrossing array of works. In one room one comes across ‘Snail’ – what looks like the tube of a huge trombone, un-stretched and then re-coiled, the interior of which is painted in a brilliant, glistening red vanish. In the next, one comes across piles of ceramic towers, made out of small tubes of clay – the similarly of which to excreta cannot go unmissed. Yet, this epitomises the audaciousness of Kapoor’s work – beautifully executed, these piles of ‘poo’ have visitors winding their way through them so as to inspect them more carefully.
The highlight had to be Kapoor’s monumental work, 'Svayambh' (which means ‘self-generated’ in Sanskrit). This huge work slowly inches its way across the entire length of Burlington house, squeezing its way under the arches. Exploring the idea that sculptures participate in their own creation, this sculpture enthrals and excites visitors.
Anish Kapoor is at the Royal Academy until 11th December 2009.
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