To Darkness: Svayambh

Since the 1970s Anish Kapoor has been creating sculptures and installations from a variety of materials such as wood, stone, metal, wax, and resin. His use of bright pigments and archetypal forms enables his audience to appreciate these works on a variety of levels. This volume presents Kapoor's sculptures from the last thirty years, focusing specifically on his recent installation, Svayambh ("self-creation" in Sanskrit), in which a giant block of red Vaseline moves imperceptibly between rooms in the gallery, leaving behind traces of color on the walls. The text analyzes in depth many of Kapoor's major works and places them in their historical and philosophical context, offering new ways of understanding both Kapoor's work and contemporary sculpture.