Heavy Metal

X-Quad (2018)

When Simon Van Parys came to use the metal workshop we couldn’t help but be intrigued. Working as a multidisciplinary artist, Belgium based Van Parys came to London for a residency at By Other Means gallery to work on his solo project Handmade by Injection into the Virtual.

The show is part of a larger series of sculpture – The Sky is the Limit – that’s inspired by car and motorcycle workshops.

Tuned V8 (2018)

Simon came to Blackhorse to build the frames which support the sculptures. Working to a very tight deadline, Simon arrived with only three days to complete an induction, weld the stools and mount the pieces in time for the private view. Heavily influenced by machinery and techno music, he creates a world where analogue meets a digital counterpart. Primarily a sculptor using cutting edge plastics like Carbon Fiber Epoxy and 3D techniques, the pieces are augmented with paintings, graphic design and electronic music.

The London show focuses on high-octane V8 piston engines. ‘Every sculpture that’s presented at the show was created within a month from scratch.

‘The series is a combination of modelled stuff and a lot of found stuff. I shopped around for five pairs of speakers because I wanted to integrate those into the sculptures. The finalised works are playing a buzzing, engine-like soundscape I also created during the project.’

Space V8 (2018)

You can find out more about Simon’s work and see this current project at By Other Means now.