Tuesday 18 May 2010

A new race of radically altered beings





Opening night at White Cube's latest Marc Quinn exhibition 'Allanah, Buck, Catman, Chelsea, Michael, Pamela and Thomas' was a circus with people everywhere and a who's looking at who vibe. Possibly the perfect backdrop for a fully fledged celebration of narcissism.

Centred round the public's obsession with the body, the exhibition shows the extremities to which people are willing to go to transform themselves. There's Pammy with her mega-watt bust, the pregnant man, the man who tattoed his face to look like a cat, male & female porn stars with sexual organs of the opposite sex - basically a whole new breed of altered people. A reminder that today you don't just have to play with the cards nature dealt you.

Whilst beautiful, I felt very detached from the virtuous sculptures and repelled and disinterested in the work to a degree, unable to make a connection. In hindsight, this is probably exactly how the artist wants you to feel as Quinn makes addictive viewing of the ongoing disconnect between body & soul.

PS I've just realised I chopped all the naughty bits out of my photos. Sorry about that :)

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