Sam Durant: Scaffold. Sculpture at dOCUMENTA (13)

One of the largest works at dOCUMENTA (13) in Kassel (Germany) is American artist Sam Durant’s sculpture Scaffold. It’s located in a prominent place in Kassel’s Karslaue Park in front of the Aueteich pond.

Sam Durant’s work for dOCUMENTA (13) is a huge sculpture that has a strong presence, but it’s not immediately clear what it represents or how it is to be used. The visitors are allowed to climb the structure, but because of its complexity, it obviously isn’t just a viewing platform or a play structure for children. In fact, Sam Durant’s sculpture is made up of a combination of reconstructed gallows (scaffolds) that were used for executions in the United States, and an artistic statement about the death penalty.

Sam Durant was born in 1961 in Seattle. The artist lives in Los Angeles. Sam Durant has had solo exhibitions at the Massachusetts College of Art, Boston (2006), and MOCA, Los Angeles (2002). His group exhibitions have included the Sculpture Biennale of Carrara (2010), the Biennale of Sydney (2008), and the Whitney Biennial (2004). In 2008, Sam Durant was a finalist for the Hugo Boss Prize.

Sam Durant: Scaffold. Sculpture at dOCUMENTA (13). Karlsaue Park, Kassel (Germany), July 4, 2012.

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