American · Contemporary art
Daniel Arsham
b. 1980, Cleveland, Ohio
Daniel Arsham (born 1980) is an American artist known for 'Fictional Archaeology': everyday objects and body parts cast in crystal, ash and stone so they look like eroded relics dug up from the future.
1 work in the collection
Works by Daniel Arsham
Daniel Arsham is an American artist, born in Cleveland in 1980 and raised in Miami, who works across sculpture, architecture, film and design. He is best known for what he calls "Fictional Archaeology": casts of familiar objects (cameras, telephones, sneakers, classical busts, human hands) made in volcanic ash, selenite, quartz or bronze, then broken open so they look like relics excavated centuries from now.
Life in brief
Arsham's home in Miami was destroyed by Hurricane Andrew in 1992, an experience he has linked to his interest in architecture failing and decaying. He studied at the Cooper Union in New York, graduating in 2003. Early on he designed stage sets for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, and in 2008 he co-founded the architecture and design studio Snarkitecture with Alex Mustonen. He is color-blind, which he has said shaped his long preference for white, gray and mineral tones. He has collaborated with brands including Dior, Adidas and Porsche, which has made his work unusually visible outside the art world.
Style and technique
The method is consistent: take an object everyone recognizes, cast it in a material associated with geology, then sculpt in "erosion" so that parts of the surface fall away to reveal crystal growing inside. The effect collapses past, present and future. A 1980s camera looks like a Roman artifact; a Greek statue looks newly dug out of the ground.
Holding Hands
Holding Hands (2015) shows two forearms emerging from a wall, their hands clasped. They are cast in hydrostone, a hard white gypsum, and parts of the skin have broken away to reveal glittering selenite beneath, as if the gesture had been fossilized. The work turns an ordinary sign of affection into something that might be found in a ruin, and its eroded wrists recall the broken limbs of antique sculpture such as the Winged Victory of Samothrace.
Where to see his work
Arsham exhibits internationally with Perrotin and other galleries, and his sculptures appear in museum shows and public sites. For a different take on giant eroded figures, see the work of Daniel Popper.
Questions & answers
What is Daniel Arsham's Fictional Archaeology?
Fictional Archaeology is Arsham's name for his signature series: casts of present-day objects and classical sculptures made in ash, selenite, quartz or bronze and partly eroded, so they look like artifacts excavated in the distant future.
What is Daniel Arsham's Holding Hands made of?
Holding Hands (2015) is made of hydrostone, a hard gypsum casting material, and selenite crystal. Two clasped forearms project from a wall, their surfaces broken away to reveal the crystal underneath.
Why does Daniel Arsham use so little color?
Arsham is color-blind, and for many years his work stayed in whites, grays and mineral tones. He has said that special corrective glasses later let him introduce more color into some series.