Language of the Physical: Katherine Gili Sculpture

8 Nov 2024-9 Mar 2025

Katherine Gili, Aqui, 1981, Forged mild steel, varnished, waxed.. Credit: Photo by Orlando Gili.

Overview

Language of the Physical: Katherine Gili Sculpture brings together a range of sculptures by Katherine Gili, spanning four decades from 1980 to 2022. Gili’s practice is rooted in a deeply physical engagement with materials—particularly steel, heavy-duty paper, and paper clay—and her work has steadily gained recognition in recent years. Most notably, her sculpture Vertical IV (1975) was recently displayed for the first time at Tate Britain as part of their ongoing collection display, Modern and Contemporary British Art (1965–1980), highlighting Gili’s significant contribution to British sculpture.

Katherine Gili has been making sculpture for over fifty years but has only recently received wider public visibility. Gili was a student of Anthony Caro, one of the leading figures of 20th-century sculpture and the subject of Pitzhanger’s summer exhibition last year. Her work marks a shift from the industrial aesthetic of steel sculpture to an increasingly sensual and subjective approach to abstract form. Alongside the Tate, Gili’s sculptures are held in prominent collections, including Arts Council and Henry Moore Institute.

This exhibition highlights Gili’s exploration of the expressive potential of materials through the physical act of making. Working with steel, bronze, and paper clay, Gili challenges the boundaries of form and construction. Her early paper-based works, sometimes cast into bronze, reflect her experimental approach, while her steel sculptures, shaped through cutting and forging, embody her fascination with the transformative nature of material. Her recent work has shifted towards a more personal engagement with the human body as a source of inspiration.

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Language of the Physical: Katherine Gili Sculpture press release
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