Mike Nelson on Art, Money, and the Politics of Ultramarine Blue
Mike Nelson's exhibition 'Cloak of rags (Tale of a dismembered bank, rendered in blue)' at Galleria Franco Noero in Turin features debris from a former UBS bank building in Monaco that he painted entirely in ultramarine blue. The pigment, derived from lapis lazuli mined in Afghanistan, historically funded the Taliban. Nelson discusses the relationship between art and money, the geopolitical implications of the color, and the transformation of a bank into sculptural fragments. He also reflects on his earlier works, including 'The Amnesiacs' and 'The Coral Reef', and the influence of travel in Turkey, Romania, and the Middle East on his practice. The interview covers themes of loss, memory, and the blurring of fiction and reality.
Key facts
- Mike Nelson painted the interior of a nine-story former UBS bank in Monaco entirely in ultramarine blue.
- The ultramarine pigment comes from lapis lazuli, historically mined in Afghanistan and used to fund the Taliban.
- The exhibition 'Cloak of rags' at Galleria Franco Noero in Turin consists of debris salvaged from the bank before its demolition.
- Nelson was invited by Suad Garayeva-Maleki and Cristiano Raimondi, commissioned by Nouveau Musée National de Monaco, partly funded by UBS.
- The work explores the historical and economic connotations of ultramarine blue, from Renaissance paintings to ancient Egypt and Sumer.
- Nelson's 1993 work 'A staging of the reconstruction of the southern palace of Babylon' referenced Saddam Hussein's reconstruction of Babylon.
- The death of his friend Erlend Williamson in 1996 influenced the series 'The Amnesiacs'.
- Nelson's 2000 work 'The Coral Reef' was inspired by Stanisław Lem's 'A Perfect Vacuum' and featured a series of reception areas.
- The interview was conducted by Artribune and published in 2017.
- Nelson's first trip to Turkey in 1987 and subsequent travels in the Middle East shaped his artistic interests.
Entities
Artists
- Mike Nelson
- Robert Smithson
- Michael Powell
- Emeric Pressburger
- J.G. Ballard
- Stanisław Lem
- Arkadij Strugackij
- Boris Strugackij
- Andrei Tarkovsky
- Hal Hartley
- Italo Calvino
- William S. Burroughs
- Erlend Williamson
- Ania Rachmat
- Saddam Hussein
Institutions
- Galleria Franco Noero
- Nouveau Musée National de Monaco
- UBS
- Chelsea College of Arts
- Artribune
Locations
- Loughborough
- Monaco
- Turin
- Italy
- Afghanistan
- Egypt
- Sumer
- Venice
- Bucharest
- Romania
- Berwick-upon-Tweed
- England
- Scotland
- Glencoe
- Turkey
- Pakistan
- Palmyra
- Syria
- Morocco
- Tunisia
- London
- Budapest
- Hungary
- Mexico