El Anatsui’s New Asian Exhibitions Expand the Boundaries of Contemporary Sculpture

White Cube has announced a series of concurrent exhibitions in Seoul and Hong Kong featuring new works by the sculptor El Anatsui. This presentation marks the artist’s first exhibition with the gallery and introduces an unprecedented body of work that continues his long-standing engagement with material transformation and the “non-fixed form.” The exhibitions follow Anatsui’s recent large-scale installations at the Museum of Art Pudong in Shanghai and the Tate Modern in London.

Anatsui’s practice is characterized by the use of salvaged materials, most notably bottle caps sourced from the global circulation of consumer goods. In his Accra studio, thousands of these metal fragments are meticulously sutured together to create intricate, textile-like compositions. While his previous works have typically been viewed as wall-mounted tapestries, this latest series introduces a significant shift in structural emphasis. For the first time, Anatsui has designed these sculptures to be viewed from both the recto and verso, allowing for installations that occupy the center of a gallery space rather than being restricted to the wall.

This evolution in form highlights the artist’s “non-fixed” philosophy, where the sculpture remains adaptable to its architectural environment. The new works utilize a restrained palette, often relying on the inherent colors of the mass-produced metal. One primary example features a dual-sided composition: one side is defined by deep, earthy red tones, while the reverse presents a monochromatic field of silver. This transparency of construction invites an analytical viewing of the labor and technique involved in the assembly of the fragments.

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The upcoming presentations add to Anatsui’s extensive history within the Asian contemporary art landscape, which began with the Osaka Triennale in 1995. His contributions to the field have been recognized with several of the art world’s highest honors, including the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Biennale in 2015 and the Praemium Imperiale Award for Sculpture in 2017. His work is currently represented in the permanent collections of major global institutions, including the Centre Pompidou, the British Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The exhibitions and presentations are scheduled as follows:

• White Cube Seoul: 18 March – 18 April 2026
• White Cube Hong Kong: 25 March – 9 May 2026
• Art Basel Hong Kong: 27 – 29 March 2026

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