Sculptures and Drawings

The Buchmann Galerie is pleased to present the exhibition  Sculptures and Drawings  by Tony Cragg.

Monumental sculptures from the  series Industrial Nature are juxtaposed with an extensive body of 250 drawings from the past 40 years, titled  Journal. This core group of works on paper is being shown in its entirety for the first time and represents the very essence of the German British sculptor’s graphic oeuvre.

In the sculptures of the  Industrial Nature  series, Cragg explores a multifaceted dialogue between nature and technology: the organic, ellipsoid curved, leaf like shapes of the works evoke the dynamics and movement of natural processes, while simultaneously presenting a distinctly mechanical aesthetic. This tension between untamed form and strict tectonics speaks to the series’ highly topical theme of domesticated nature. After all, we are scarcely surrounded by wild nature nowadays; instead, a utilitarian and artificial understanding of nature prevails—nature tailored for human use and the human eye.
 

Journal, the suite of 250 drawings dating from 1986 to 2024 that Tony Cragg has selected from his extensive works on paper, is being presented here in its entirety to the public for the first time. This comprehensive selection presents a concise perspective on the artist's graphic engagement with form, space, and material. Broad in scope, each drawing captures a moment in his exhaustive search for formal principles; they sensitise the viewer to the subtle shifts of line, rhythm, and spatial relationship, and provide a unique insight into the artist’s creative thought process.