By maintaining a connection to its original reference point, contemporary, recontextualized artwork plays a pivotal role in the analysis of the world, society, and the self. Meet the artists who are turning to recontextualization as a key aspect to their sculptural work, whether that be a means to casting a critical eye upon the everyday or developing their practice with elements of humor and mischief.

Kirstin Hutsch and Willem Besselink | NL=US at VOLTA Basel and New York

Hutsch’s recent work seeks to investigate the relationship between what is real and what exists as image. Her sculptural compositions constitute an inquiry into the nature of human perception and the substance of reality. The boundaries of the canvas are the central points of fascination to Hutsch where, in the past, she transferred gesso between canvases or even created a trompe l’oiel from the canvas weave itself. Now, she uses multiple canvases and colored tape as the subject matter and compositional source for her work.

Kirsten Hutsch, Domestic Painting no.1, 2021. Laundry rack, acrylic, impasto-gel, mesh, and UV-varnish. Courtesy of NL=US

You can expect to see themes of sensory ambiguity and the everyday across NL=US’ presentation. Willem Besselink will also be showcased during VOLTA New York and Basel, with work derived from a fascination with structures embedded in recognizable daily occurrences. He seeks to understand these structures – typically those rooted in architectural detail – using disparate forms of notation and registration.

Willem Besselink, CNC cut coated plywood panel ,2021. Courtesy of NL-US

Johan Gelper | Lechbinska Gallery at VOLTA Basel

Johan Gelper is an artist currently living in Ghent in Belgium, whose work epitomizes the idea of recontextualizing sculpture. In synthesizing the natural with the industrial, geometrical and organic elements mix to produce playful sculptures. Built from existing, jarring materials, his airy forms are assembled in such a way that they suddenly take on an entirely different meaning.

Johan Gelper, Geotropism, 2022. Courtesy of Lechbinska Gallery

Mindaugas Juncys | (AV17) Gallery at VOLTA New York

Through marble and granite, Mindaugas Juncys works to recontextualize domestic objects into home trophies. Adopting a surrealist feel, crumpled cans, pillows and vending machines also gain a sense of importance and luxury when solidified in traditional sculptural materials.

Mindaugas Juncys, Trophy, 2019. Marble, granite, aluminum. Courtesy of (AV17) Gallery

An air of satire hangs around Juncys’ work and the impressive collection exhibited by (AV17) Gallery will capture his signature sense of irony and humor in a way that pauses the fast rhythm of contemporary life.

Mariu Palacios | CAM Galería at VOLTA New York

The work of Peruvian artist Palacios not only recontextualizes sculpture but its own subject matter too. Her work has taken on another dimension since she studied figurative sculpture at the Tel Aviv School of Art in 2011, where her interest in the pain-desire relationship surfaced. Through her work, her emotional wounds becomes the sculptural armor, and fleeting sentimentality becomes permanent and tangible. Turning her sculptural ‘Embroidered Guardians’ into photographic prints provides an accessibility to her obscure forms and shines a light on the thick conceptual fog in which her work flourishes. A visit to CAM Galería’s stand will give you the opportunity to delve into each of Palacios’ beautifully crafted contradictions, where you’ll also be able to find her installations that play with uncommon materials: leather, dry ice, dried roots and lobster shells.

Mariu Palacios, Embroidered Guardians, 2022, Photography series. Courtesy of CAM Galería

Sculpture is set to be a discipline that holds prominence at both VOLTA New York and Basel in 2023. Its recontextualization provides the contemporary cutting-edge thread you’ll find woven throughout the fair. We’d also recommend a visit to CUT Art, who will be presenting Vlad Ogay’s “readymade” mixed media pieces that deconstruct daily objects to fit within a suitably curated context. Having received prestigious awards from the Cannes Film Festival, expect a theatrical flair that leans into his international roots of South Korea and Russia.