Purple Magazine
— S/S 2012 issue 17
Matthew Barney
The iconic artist MATTHEW BARNEY let his friend Ari Marcopoulos photograph him in his studio in Long Island City, New York. At the time, Barney was preparing his recent exhibition at the Barbara Gladstone Gallery: a show based on myths from ancient Egypt. This story reveals — behind the glamour and dark phantasmagoria of Barney’s work — the picture of a Renaissance artist physically engaged in the chemistry, labor, and construction of his creations. photography and text by ARI MARCOPOULOS All the artworks in this story were presented in a show at the Barbara Gladstone Gallery: Matthew Barney DJED, New York, 2011
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A car part in a block of salt.
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Matthew Barney in his studio.
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Matthew Barney’s studio is located along the East River, in an industrial part of Long Island City. He and his assistants dug a hole (shown in the middle of this photograph) in the floor of his studio, jackhammering the concrete. Matthew wanted to build an Egyptian death chamber below his studio in order to film in it. But while they were digging, it became clear that the water table was too high, making it impossible to create an underground space. In addition to the water, there was oil and a terrible smell. It seemed wiser to close the hole.
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This rope was cast for a sculpture, part of it in plastic, which fuses into lead. The trickiest part is the transition from plastic to lead. Lead is highly poisonous. Compared with plastic, lead is much harder and more difficult to pour. The lead also adds considerable weight to the work. This type of process is hardly new in Barney’s work. He labors like an old-world sculptor, fully engaged in the physical process of making his work. He studies every aspect of it. His way of working is like a performance.