Eilís O'Connell

London, Wapping Hydraulic Station, Turning the Season, n.n., 2008-09

Texture and experimentation are central to the artistic output of Northern Irish artist Eilís O’Connell. Throughout her œuvre, she utilises a wide range of materials and explores their varying effects on form and balance. The present work is constructed from carbon fibre, a material more commonly used in yacht-making technology and in motorsports and aerospace engineering; a choice predicated on the material’s unusual strength-weight ratio.

The present sculpture derives from the natural form of a wing. Built to monumental scale and tapering upwards, exploiting the excellent strength-weight ratio of the material and achieving a startling sense of weightlessness, Wingblade forms an extraordinary discourse between the organic and the artificial. The origins of the form, from the natural word of flight, collide with the futuristic domain of aero-science, and result in something both figurative and abstract, and undeniably contemporary. Its pure simplicity and scale make for a standout feature in the open planes of Chatsworth.

Eilís O’Connell’s works are exhibited around the world and her striking minimalist style has earned her a large number of public commissions; her sculptures can be seen in London Docklands, Kensington Gate, St Augustine’s Reach in Bristol and the Gateway in Cardiff to name but a few. Wingblade featured in the 2008 exhibition Turning the Season at the Wapping Power Station in London.