London: A new powerful sculpture on London’s Fourth Plinth has been revealed: Mil Veces un Instante (A Thousand Times in an Instant) by Teresa Margolles. It marks the 15th installation on the iconic plinth that has become synonymous with showing innovative contemporary works by internationally acclaimed artists. The Fourth Plinth is considered one of the world’s most prominent public art commissions, and it is located in Trafalgar Square. It has been 25 years since the very first work to show there was Ecce Homo by Mark Wallinger back in 1999.
Margolles’s sculpture is a defiant tribute to the trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming communities. The work encompasses 726 individuals’ facial plaster casts and attempts to celebrate their strength and struggles in homage to Karla, a transgender woman and close friend of Margolles-brutally murdered in Juárez, Mexico, in 2015. Karla’s case has gone unsolved, and her murder continues to shake the very core of the trans community.
The plaster casts are arranged to recall the ancient Mesoamerican Tzompantli, a rack for skulls to hold the heads of war captives or sacrifice victims. This sculpture is 2.5 meters tall and weighs 3.3 tonnes; it has raw human energy. Time will eventually patinate the sculpture naturally as it is out in the open air; the details of faces will dull with time, showing the mark of the elements.
Mil Veces un Instant was a collaborative work; the casts were made in Mexico City, Juárez, and London with the help of community groups such as Micro Rainbow and QUEERCIRCLE. Each plaster cast represents a direct impression of the participant’s face. It preserves their features, hair, and skin cells within the sculpture itself, making it an intimate human record.
With the Bloomberg Connects app, audiences can engage with the sculpture, including deeper information on its creation and a playlist of the music selected by the participants when it was cast.
Speaking about the work, Teresa Margolles said, “This collective sculpture brings together faces from 726 people living in the United Kingdom and Mexico that stands not only as a display of resilience and humanity from the trans plus/non-binary community but also as a reminder of the murders and disappearances that still occur, especially in Latin America.”.
She continued reflecting on the ninth anniversary of Karla’s murder, “We pay this tribute to her and to all the other people who were killed for reasons of hate. But, above all, to those who live on, to the new generations who will defend the power to choose to live with dignity freely.”
The Fourth Plinth has inspired and challenged Londoners and visitors for over 25 years. Teresa Margolles’s latest piece continues that tradition, shedding light on the critical issues we as a society are still facing. Representation matters, and this work stands proudly in the heart of London as we work toward building a better city for everyone,” said Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries Justine Simons OBE.
Ekow Eshun, Chair of the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group, said: “Since 1999, the Fourth Plinth has been one of the world’s most prestigious public art commissions, generating a national conversation about contemporary art. I am so pleased to unveil this arresting sculpture by Teresa Margolles today.”
The Mayor of London funds the Fourth Plinth with support from Arts Council England and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Photo: P C Robinson © Artlyst 2024