Art at Salisbury Cathedral: David Batchelor

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David Batchelor at Salisbury Cathedral
This winter Salisbury Cathedral presents the work of internationally renowned artist, David Batchelor. His work is concerned with colour, often taking found objects and transforming them to celebrate the range of hues found in the urban landscape.

Floating high above the spire crossing in the centre of the Cathedral – and echoing the mosaic of colour in the stained glass windows – is the kaleidoscopic installation, Disco Mechanique (2008), where a host of vibrant baubles rotate slowly in mid-air using ambient light to cast touches of colour onto the surrounding architecture. Each bauble is formed from sunglasses bought from a street market in Brazil and moulded together to transform them into this galaxy of spinning globes.

Candela (2016) sees recycled domestic bottles strung together in a garland using low-energy lightbulbs, reminiscent of the neon lighting you might see on a local high street. The once mundane containers are barely recognisable as viewers see the vivid colour first.

Concretos (2012-2022) is a series of works inspired by the artist seeing shards of broken, shimmering coloured glass embedded atop a wall in a Sicilian seaside town.