Olivia Bax

Olivia Bax
Vis-à-vis II, 2023
Steel, plywood, chicken wire, epoxy clay, plaster, paper, PVA, household paint, wire, funnel
64 x 55 x 48 cm
25 x 21 ⅗ x 18 ⅘ in.

I believe art must be experienced; the screen cannot replace the intrigues and detail of work. Negative space can only be understood when work is fully explored, and this is the great strength of sculpture.’ – Olivia Bax

Olivia Bax’s sculpture is unexpected in every way, from its playful compositions to its unconventional materials – paper pulp, chicken wire, household paint. Welding metal armatures and assembling protruding limbs, she pushes us to consider different perspectives. Applying the paper pulp by hand gives Olivia’s work its texture; it illustrates the way the material has been shaped and positioned, while the colour tones explored in her work further demonstrate touch or pressure.

While working as a studio assistant to Anthony Caro in her early twenties, Caro encouraged Bax: “Stop making sculpture, create a world”. Subsequently, her practice evolved into a vehicle for enquiry, questioning the world around her and creating alternative realities. Bax enjoys subverting and poking fun at sculpture’s ‘rules’. Adopting lightweight, waste materials as her media, her work challenges the traditional assumption that sculpture should be heavy and made from expensive materials.

Based in London, Olivia Bax gained a BA in Fine Art from Byam Shaw School of Art, London (2007-2010), before completing her MFA in Sculpture at the Slade School of Fine Art in 2014-16. She is the recipient of The Mark Tanner Sculpture Award (2019/20) and Kenneth Armitage Young Sculptor Prize (2016). Bax has recently been exhibited at Holtermann Fine Art, London (2024); BoLee and Workman, Bruton (2024); Mead Gallery, Warwick Arts Centre (2023-24); Southbank Centre, London (2023); Hatch, Paris (2023); Lustwarande, Platform for Contemporary Sculpture, Tilburg (2023); L21, Mallorca (2022) and Ribot Gallery, Milan (2019/20). Bax’s work was acquired by the 2020-21 UK Arts Council Collection, and is also in the Ingram Collection and Tremenheere Sculpture Park.