Kevin Francis Grey “Maquette Table,” 2018. Courtesy Kevin Francis Gray and Andersen’s, Copenhagen.

Press Release, September 2018

Andersen’s is pleased to present the first major solo show in Scandinavia by Irish sculptor Kevin Francis Gray: to mark his return to Copenhagen after curating a show at Andersen’s in the spring, Gray re-immerses himself in the space to introduce recent works and a significant new installation.

This new exhibition is presented across the two rooms at Andersen’s Amaliegade, each offering unique insight into the practice and new works of Kevin Francis Gray.

The courtyard gallery will unveil never-before-exhibited pieces: namely, two bearded figures in marble. The stately Bearded Man who dominates in black Marquina marble is in conversation with his peer, the Bust of a Youth in white Carrara marble. Both demonstrate Gray’s mastery of the material; the control of the sculptor who effortlessly translates the suppleness of the initial clay into the hardness of the rock. On the walls hang Gray’s most recent works, from his Marble Panel series. Four small marble panels framed in oak hint at the inky lines of a sculptor’s preparatory drawing.

By sculpting into stone the imagery commonly reserved for this initial stage of the process, Gray manipulates our expectations and further abstracts the corporal imagery. We catch only glimmers of a shoulder, a hip or the curve of a breast, as though the artist preserves the complete visual for himself. The illusion of the malleability of the stone matched with these hypnotising lines makes it almost irresistible not to reach out and feel them, grazing over where the artist’s hand has been before.

Kevin Francis Grey “Maquette Table” (detail), 2018.
Courtesy Kevin Francis Gray and Andersen’s, Copenhagen.

The street-view gallery presents the monumental Maquette Table. For this installation, Gray has transported the 4x4m working table from his London studio to the gallery. It is an invitation into his mind and process. Gray moves beyond simply sharing the materiality of his works, and exposes the vulnerability of his most intimate practice. With this piece, the viewer has the opportunity to step into the artist’s studio and experience every step of the idea-generating and making process, complete with experiments, failures, finished works, sketches and inspiration. A truly immersive experience, Gray hopes each viewer will find their own uniquely meaningful way to engage with the Maquette Table and its contents.

About Kevin Francis Gray
(b. 1972, Armagh, Northern Ireland) Irish sculptor Kevin Francis Gray has developed a career working between London and Italy, focusing his most recent practice on pushing the boundaries of marble-sculpting. His early works, ranging from resin to bronze and then marble, garnered positive attention from a growing group of loyal collectors.

His latest body of work furthers his exploration of contemporising marble, while drawing inspiration from some of the greats: Michelangelo’s prisoners, de Kooning’s clam diggers, Moore’s reclining figures and Matisse’s nude. While the dedication to the stone and pushing forward the boundaries of what it can do are palpable (Gray works the marble in such a way that it appears as malleable as clay), his work exudes a beautiful tension in what it expresses: stories of people informed by Gray’s personal history, growing up in South Armagh, which innately informs the emotional content of his sculptures.

He received his BA from the National College of Art & Design in Dublin (1995) and the School of Art Institute in Chicago (1996) before going on to earn his MA in Fine Art from Goldsmiths College in London. He works closely with the Giannoni marble studio in Pietrasanta, renown for its use of sculpting techniques dating back to Canova and Michelangelo.

Kevin Francis Grey “Maquette Table” (detail), 2018. Courtesy Kevin Francis Gray and Andersen’s, Copenhagen.

Opening: Wednesday 10 October, from 17 | Facebook event
Exhibition period: 10 October - 29 November 2018.
Opening hours: Wed-fri: 12-17, Sat: 11-15 and by appointment.