GTTVL'Âge d'Or by Gavin Turk at Frieze Sculpture Park 2020

Disembodied from any room, structure or building, this ‘larger than life’ painted bronze door, is freestanding, open at 45°’s to the frame. This internal wooden door by Gavin Turk now placed in Regent's Park has different colours painted on each side, the door shows signs of age and wear which are painted onto its surface. Its giant bronze door handle and keyhole seem to shrink the viewer.

This work invokes Magritte’s painting La Victoire and the title references Luis Bunuel’s surreal film of the same name. It is a playful surrealist public artwork that the audience enjoys interacting with as a gateway to their imagination. L’Âge d’Or teases the audience to question notions of home, security, architecture and also the bolder concepts of inside and outside. The work can also be seen in the context of Marcel Duchamp’s door in rue Larrey and Jasper Johns’ painted bronze Ballentine beer cans.

Frieze Sculpture opens in the English Gardens of Regent's Park, London, from 5-18 October 2020 and is free and open to all. Video by Dave Bruel