Artist:
Martin Boyce (born 1967 in Glasgow, Scotland; lives and works in Scotland).

Materials:
Wood, steel, and paint; 40 x 60 x 169 cm.

Description:
“The sculpture, Dark Unit and Mask, replicates the structure of a small Eames Storage Unit. On top of the unit sits a nickel-plated steel display stand holding what appears to be an ashtray and a mask. The mask is constructed from parts of an ‘Ant’ and ‘Series 7’ chair designed in 1951 and 1955 by the Danish designer Arne Jacobsen. I became interested in what happens to the original objects as they shift through history. I sense that there is a desire when transplanting an aesthetic from one time period to another that one can somehow recreate the spirit, the social or cultural politics or the ethos of that period. What happens however is that through its journey the aesthetic collects its own ethos and this is often one based on pecuniary notions of taste and exclusivity.”
—Martin Boyce, “Dark Unit and Mask, 2003,” website of the Arts Council Collection.