it's the year 3018 in daniel arsham's eroded fantasy future at perrotin

from september 8 – october 21, it’s the year 3018 at perrotin new york, where daniel arsham outlines his dystopian vision of the future. the exhibition — arsham’s 15th with the gallery — presents a temporary garage of modern objects that have fallen into obsolescence over time. visitors are invited into a wunderkammer of materials and seemingly primeval artifacts sculpted from synthetic, natural, manmade and geological mediums. ‘3018’ depicts a future which pits culture as we know it today as eroded detritus.

eroded delorean, 2018 | stainless steel, glass reinforced plastic, quartz crystal, pyrite, paint| photo by guillaume ziccarelli, courtesy of perrotin (also main image)

the exhibition of new work includes a 1981 delorean, reminiscent of back to the future’s time travelling vehicle, and a 1961 ferrari 250 GT california from ferris bueller’s day off. here at perrotin, these cinematic pop icons are rendered in crystal, and in a state of decay. pieces of the chassis are eroded away, revealing a core of volcanic ash, pyrite crystal, selenite, and quartz where mechanical components used to be. arsham casts objects in geological materials that render them as extinct as they are recognizable. a cast of childhood cartoon characters are reimagined as calcified, cast iron-on patches — some cracked to reveal terrestrial mineral growths.

eroded delorean, 2018 (detail) | photo by guillaume ziccarelli, courtesy of perrotin

furthermore, architectural interventions throughout the gallery see an entire wall ‘eroded’ by material substance — a trompe l’oeil wallpaper produced in collaboration with calico wallpaper. forms appear to emerge from another interior surface, leaving hardened draped fabric spelling ‘FUTURE’ pressing through the wall and threatening to compromise its structural integrity. the word ominously suggests the cataclysm that has befallen these objects, or acts as a signal of redemption ahead.

eroded ferrari, 2018 | steel, fiberglass, pyrite, quartz | photo by guillaume ziccarelli, courtesy of perrotin

eroded ferrari, 2018 (detail) | photo by guillaume ziccarelli, courtesy of perrotin

future, 2017 | plaster, foam, paint | photo courtesy of VDNH, moscow, russia

welcome to the future, 2015 | volcanic ash, glacial rock dust, obsidian fragments, rose quartz fragments, steel fragments, pulverized glass, sand, crushed marble, hydrostone, metal | photo courtesy of contemporary art center, cincinnati, ohio