yutaka sone's marble + rattan sculptures at david zwirner

little manhattan, 2007-2009
marble
21 3/4 x 104 3/8 x 33 1/2 inches (55 x 265 x 85 cm)
courtesy david zwirner, new york/london

yutaka sone
david zwirner, london
november 27, 2013 through january 25, 2014

this fall, david zwirner‘s london gallery will exhibit yutaka sone’s ‘little manhattan’ sculptures alongside ‘banana trees’ made from rattan. ‘little manhattan’ is carved marble structure that recreates a bird-eye’s view of the new york island, transforming it into a plateau with painstaking architectural details and meticulous craftsmanship that were replicated from photographs, google earth shots, and helicopter trips. working in a wide range of media — predominantly sculpture, but also painting, drawing, photography, video, and performance — sone’s work revolves around a tension between realism and perfection.

yutaka sone
little manhattan (detail), 2007-2009
marble
21 3/4 x 104 3/8 x 33 1/2 inches (55 x 265 x 85 cm)
courtesy david zwirner, new york/london

the artist originally trained as an architect and his almost obsessive attention to detail, and its relationship to his work, underpins his practice at large. whether they be architectural or natural, landscapes occur throughout the artist’s oeuvre, frequently picking his subjects from actual locations — hong kong island, los angeles highway junctions, a mountain range, a section of a rainforest, ski resorts, and his own backyard — scaling and recreating these in paint, marble, and crystal, or even organic materials like as plants and soil.

tropical composition / banana tree no4, 2008-2010
rattan, metal armature, and paint
93 x 113 x 118 inches (236.2 x 287 x 299.7 cm)
courtesy david zwirner new york/london

tropical composition / banana tree no4, 2008-2010
rattan, metal armature, and paint
93 x 113 x 118 inches (236.2 x 287 x 299.7 cm)
courtesy david zwirner new york/london

yutaka sone with baby banana tree, installed at pasadena city college
photo by grant delin
baby banana tree, 2007-2008
rattan, fiberglass, resin, acrylic paint and stainless steel
300 x 180 x 180 inches (762 x 457.2 x 457.2 cm)
courtesy david zwirner, new york/london