Arcadia Robert Stadler × Yinka Shonibare CBE

Windy Chair by Yinka Shonibare is crafted from weighty aluminium and steel but creates the illusion of a piece of fabric caught in a gust of wind. Its surface is populated with colorful patterns inspired by Ankara – or ‘Dutch wax’ – print, alluding to the artist’s exploration of colonialism in West Africa and the construction of cultural identities. The artwork reflects an innovative approach to contemporary design and fabrication, achieving remarkable energy and balance in a gravity-defying form.

Stadler’s 3 DPD Low Table 1 appears both lightweight and sturdy, featuring a dynamic, patterned surface that demonstrates meticulous technical precision. The piece is inspired by pietra dura, a decorative arts tradition of inlaying whose artisans often use marble to represent figurative elements, usually composed on flat panels. For each of Stadler’s 3DPD pieces, a block of Olimpico Striato marble is carved in such a way as to reveal the transition of the stone’s veins from wavy to straight.

Frederik Molenschot’s large-scale light sculpture CL Breda is designed to take ownership of its environment and overwhelm the viewer. Molenschot handshapes the bronze structure to achieve the desired level of detail, imbuing it with larger-than-life vitality. This work is from the designer’s City Light series, which envisions an abstract futuristic city as seen at night, with networks of light layered on top of one another.

Together, the works of this exhibition reflect a pioneering level of skill and vision when it comes to materiality, inviting viewers to consider the position of such creations in both indoor and outdoor environments. Through a shared language of experimentation and form, the pieces invite visitors to reflect on contemporary ways of seeing and being through contemporary design.