Richard Deacon Siamese Metal #1, 2008

Richard Deacon’s sculptures are characterised by a controlled structure combined with an imaginative, unexpected use of materials. There is a striking tension between the resolute abstraction of his works and the organic implications of their shapes, which often evoke forms from molecular biology. Siamese Metal #1 (2008) is composed of polygonal fields that fit together to form a complex, almost skeletal structure defined by clarity, austerity and a graphic aesthetic. Viewed from different perspectives, the sculpture’s appearance shifts radically. The focus is on the interplay of positive and negative forms and on the understanding that a sculpture is not defined by its surface alone, but through its intervening spaces.