Romanian artist Mircea Cantor's work came to international prominence during the Berlin Biennale in 2006 with his film Departure (2005) featuring a wolf and a deer stalking one another in the confines of a white gallery space.
His sculptural installation was part of a series of commissions organised by Camden Art Centre, London, Modern Art Oxford and Arnolfini, Bristol. Elaborating on the theme of uncertainty, Cantor prompts reflections on worlds within worlds, and on freedom and its limitations.
Cantor has a gift for bringing metaphors to life – in one installation two peacocks strutted and preened themselves in a succession of golden cages, one inside the next. A flying carpet patterned with angels and aeroplanes hovered in mid-air.
“Cantor’s poetic use of materials, images, animals and places offers an eloquent meditation on the contradictions of our contemporary world and the human condition. His work has a beauty and immediacy that resonates long after the encounter.” – Suzanne Cotter, Curator
