Untitled

In Untitled, Daniel Silver harnesses classical method to create a hybrid form of layered histories. Working in Carrara, Italy – the source of marble for such masterpieces as Michelangelo’s David – Silver modelled a male head from a discarded marble sculpture. Modifying the awkward previous form with his own carving, Silver’s bust alternates between smooth finish and compelling imperfection. Its presentation is completed with a rough-hewn plinth, a section of beam reclaimed from an old barn in France. Painted the same white as the marble, this pedestal further blurs the conception of what material or era we’re seeing. Silver’s interest in mythology and the cycles of history provides the impetus for such encounters, exploring how we model ourselves on the past, just as the Roman Empire modelled itself on Ancient Greece. Today, artisans in the quarries and workshops of Carrara continue to carve marble sculptures based on classical works. ‘How we live and perceive the world,’ says Silver, ‘isn’t so different from 1000 years ago.’