Adrián Villar Rojas: Sculpting Apocalyptic Clay Narratives

Adrián Villar Rojas (b. 1980) creates monumental clay sculptures that evoke archaeological ruins and science-fiction themes. His first major clay work was the 2008 exhibition 'What Fire Brought Me' at Ruth Benzacar Art Gallery in Buenos Aires, featuring nearly four tons of fragmented, collapsed clay forms. In 2009, at the second Biennale de la Fin du Monde in Ushuaia, he installed a giant beached whale in a forest, its skin embedded with tree stumps. That same year, at the Cuenca Biennial in Ecuador, he presented 'It’s a Beautiful Moment': a dead tyrannosaurus with a giant girl lying on it, which was quickly destroyed by rain. Subsequent projects include a whale with crystal spikes in Berlin and equestrian sculptures in Mexico, including a robot evoking manga and Moebius. His work draws on science fiction literature, referencing Borges, Houellebecq, and Barjavel. In 2011, during a residency at Fondation SAM Art Projects in Paris, he prepared for the Argentine Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, addressing the end of the world and Neanderthals, and a monumental sculpture over ten meters high installed at the Tuileries Garden from June 30. The Venice and Paris works are linked by a shared writing process.