'Olafur Eliasson. In real life' exhibition at the Guggenheim

Eliasson filled the Guggenheim with colour and sensations

Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson landed at the Guggenheim, in collaboration with Iberdrola, with a multimedia proposal that encouraged the viewer to reflect on their understanding and perception of the physical world around us.

Olafur Eliasson, 'Your Uncertain Shadow (colour)' (2010) / Photo: María del Pilar García Ayensa / Studio Olafur Eliasson / Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection, Viena / © 2010 Olafur Eliasson.

Olafur Eliasson, 'Big Bang Fountain' (2014) / Photo: Anders Sune Berg / Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles / © 2014 Olafur Eliasson.

Olafur Eliasson, 'Moss Wall' (1994) / Photo: Anders Sune Berg / Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar / Gallery, New York / Los Angeles / © 1994 Olafur Eliasson.

Olafur Eliasson, 'Room for One Colour' (1997) / Foto: Dmitry Baranov / Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar / Gallery, New York / Los Angeles / © 1997 Olafur Eliasson.

Olafur Eliasson, 'Beauty' (1993) / Photo: Anders Sune Berg / Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles / © 1993 Olafur Eliasson.

Olafur Eliasson, 'Model Room' (2003) / Photo: Anders Sune Berg / Moderna Museet, Stockholm. Acquired in 2015 with funds from The Anna-Stina Malmborg and Gunnar Höglund Foundation / © 2003 Olafur Eliasson.

With around thirty works — some of the most important ones already on display and other new pieces created for the occasion — the exhibition Olafur Eliasson. In real life drew our attention to some of the most urgent issues of today through pieces created between 1990 and 2020 — sculptures, photographs, paintings and installations that play with reflections and colour — that question the way we perceive and function in our surroundings.

Using materials including moss, water, ice from glaciers, fog, light and reflective metals, Eliasson showed his deep commitment to society and the environment in an exhibition that could be visited from 14 February 2020 to 11 April 2021.

Iberdrola group chairman, Ignacio Galán, guided Spain's King and Queen, Felipe VI and Dona Letizia, on a visit to the Guggenheim Museum, where they toured the exhibition 'Olafur Eliasson. In Real Life', which is sponsored by Iberdrola.

AN ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS ARTIST

Eliasson's art comes from his interest in perception, movement, physical experience and sensations. He shows his concern for nature, inspired by the time he has spent in Iceland, his parents' country of origin and a country he has resided in. His Berlin studio, Studio Olafur Eliasson, is a workspace, but also one for meeting and dialogue, which brings together a varied team of experienced craftsmen, architects, archivists, researchers, administrators, chefs, programmers, art historians and specialised technicians.

In 1999, the artist, who is very aware of climate change, captured 30 Icelandic glaciers in a series of photographs he repeated twenty years later, illustrating the impact of climate change on them.

Olafur Eliasson, The Glacier Melt Series 1999/2019 (2019) / Photo: Michael Waldrep / Studio Olafur Eliasson / Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar / Gallery, New York / Los Angeles / © 2019 Olafur Eliasson.

Outside the museum, an over 11-metre-tall waterfall made with scaffolding and a series of pumps, draws the viewer's attention to this piece of nature built in an urban environment. The waterfall pours its waters into the pond behind, reproducing the same sounds and the appearance of a waterfall in the middle of nature.