Untitled (Trafalgar Square Plinth)

Rachel Whiteread (1963 - )

Plaster and resin sculpture; upper section: polyurethane resin; lower section: Jesmonite with acrylic sealant

1999

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  • About the work
    Location
    Country: UK
    City: London
    Place: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Whitehall

    Rachel Whiteread's "Untitled (Plinth)" is a small-scale model, or maquette, for her sculpture "Inverted Plinth". This was displayed in London's Trafalgar Square in 2000 as part of a series of temporary installations on the Square's "empty plinth". The sculpture consists of a resin cast of the Trafalgar Square plinth placed upside down on the plinth itself. Such exploration of space is typical of Whiteread's work, transforming an unremarkable form into an object of beauty and contemplation. Whiteread is known for her sculptures of "negative space". She was the first woman to win the prestigious Turner Prize in 1993 and she went on to represent Britain at the Venice Biennale in 1997.

  • About the artist
    Rachel Whiteread was born in London and studied at Brighton Polytechnic and the Slade School of Art. One of the most established artists of her generation (labelled by the media ‘YBAs’, or Young British Artists), she is known for her sculptures of negative spaces of domestic objects. She was the first woman to win the Turner Prize in 1993 and in 1997 represented Britain at the Venice Biennale. She has produced several commissions, including 'Monument' (2001) for Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth in London and 'Embankment' (2005–06) at Tate Modern. Her work is represented in international public collections from London to Sydney. Whiteread was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 2006 and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2019.
  • Explore
    Places
    England, London, Trafalgar Square
    Subjects
    topography, conceptual art, public square, plinth (represented)
    Materials & Techniques
    polyurethane resin, acrylic sealant, sculpture (as object name), Jesmonite
  • Details
    Artist
    Rachel Whiteread (1963 - )
    Title
    Untitled (Trafalgar Square Plinth)
    Edition
    2/12
    Date
    1999
    Medium
    Plaster and resin sculpture; upper section: polyurethane resin; lower section: Jesmonite with acrylic sealant
    Dimensions
    height: 90.20 cm, width: 51.50 cm, depth: 25.00 cm
    Acquisition
    Purchased from Anthony d'Offay Gallery, November 1999
    Inscription
    inside base: R W 2/12 1999
    GAC number
    17410