The UK sculptor Anish Kapoor was in fine form in a recent interview in The Observer, outlining his philosophy and opinions on a walk from the Hayward Gallery, which is hosting a major retrospective of his works, to Tate Modern where he made waves with his Marsyas installation in 2002. Another headline-hitting Kapoor piece is ArcelorMittal Orbit in Stratford, the UK’s tallest public sculpture that marked the launch of the 2012 London Olympics. So what’s his view on the humongous twisty piece that also incorporates a hair-raising slide? “It’s OK. Orbit’s been turned into an attraction. I guess that’s fine. But, can I be straightforward and perfectly honest? It’s not my best work. Its engineering is more present than I would like.”
Kapoor also has plenty to say about the state of the nation and how a new prime minister (possibly Andy Burnham) could transform the UK’s culture landscape. “There was a time we had vision and the creative industries were acknowledged as second only to banking. Come on! We have to get back to that, because it speaks to our youth, to their sense of adventure and to the inventiveness of the population. Mr Burnham, make it happen! Otherwise, we will be trapped by that orange monster in Washington and his kind, and everything becomes one big golf course,” he says.
