British artist Gavin Turk’s fascination with waste is a reoccurring theme throughout his body of work, exploring its aesthetic, function and value. Opening in October at Reflex Amsterdam, his new solo show features watercolours, painted bronze sculptures, and large silkscreen prints, which investigate the environmental consequences of human existence and consumer society.
“Climate is increasingly becoming a vital subject for artists as they hold their mirrors up to society,” says Turk who was arrested in 2018 for obstructing a public highway as part of the Extinction Rebellion climate change protest in London which saw thousands of people occupy five central London bridges. “Being arrested was like laying down a marker, and enabled unity with movements such as Extinction Rebellion - to wake up politicians to the undeniable evidence that humans are responsible for a dramatic change in the world’s ecosystem - and together to do something about it.”