Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight

David Zwirner is pleased to present Child of Midnight, an exhibition of new works by Marcel Dzama, on view at the gallery’s London location.

As Dzama notes, “The exhibition, Child of Midnight, plays with the theme of an apocalypse of climate change. That we are counting down the time on The Doomsday Clock, at this hour of midnight, with very little time for our children to prevent certain doom. There is also a little travel escapism in there, although the flood has started. There are also references to alchemy … and the writings of [William] Blake and Dante. And the game of chess we are playing with Mother Nature.”

This is the artist’s twelfth solo exhibition at David Zwirner since joining the gallery in 1998, and his third at the London space following his 2013 exhibition Puppets, Pawns, and Prophets and his joint presentation with Raymond Pettibon, Let us compare mythologies, in 2016.

Image: Installation view, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, David Zwirner, London, 2022

Location

24 Grafton Street London

Dates

November 17—December 22, 2022

Opening Reception

Thursday, November 17, 6-8pm

Gallery Hours

Tues—Sat 10am–6pm

Artist

Child of Midnight

Dzama’s latest works expand on the tropical, oceanic, and celestial imagery that he has been exploring over the last several years in his practice. The costumed figures and animals dance around in lush, vibrantly colored settings underneath grinning moons and shimmering stars.

Marcel Dzama

So they say, everything gonna be alright, 2021

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

22 1/4 x 30 inches (56.5 x 76.2 cm)
Framed: 25 3/8 x 33 1/8 inches (64.5 x 84.1 cm)

“I’ve been drawing and playing a lot with trickster gods in the last little while. I was thinking of the moon in control of some situation going down underneath it. He has control of everyone’s destiny. He’s watching his mad work unfold. Or maybe it’s me. It’s my representation. It’s the artist making this drawing.”

—Marcel Dzama

Marcel Dzama

Now it's summer, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

16 7/8 x 12 inches (42.9 x 30.5 cm)
Framed: 21 1/4 x 16 1/2 inches (54 x 41.8 cm)

Marcel Dzama

My love tells me of my future and helps me with my past, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

12 1/4 x 9 1/8 inches (31.1 x 23.2 cm)
Framed: 16 5/8 x 13 3/8 inches (42.2 x 34 cm)

Marcel Dzama, Now it's summer, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama, Now it's summer, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama, My love tells me of my future and helps me with my past, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama, My love tells me of my future and helps me with my past, 2022 (detail)

The new works were inspired by a range of sources, including the sixteenth-century Wunderzeichenbuch (Book of Miracles), the 1940s kitsch-inspired portraits by Francis Picabia, and John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost.

Anonymous, Folio 109, Plague of locusts in Poland, 1527, from Wunderzeichenbuch (Book of Miracles), c. 1552

Anonymous, Folio 109, Plague of locusts in Poland, 1527, from Wunderzeichenbuch (Book of Miracles), c. 1552

Francis Picabia, Portrait de Dorothy B., c. 1940. © 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Francis Picabia, Portrait de Dorothy B., c. 1940. © 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Marcel Dzama

We swam in the floods of paradise, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper in three (3) parts

Overall: 76 1/8 x 155 1/4 inches (193.5 x 394.5 cm)
Part 1: 76 x 51 3/4 inches (193.2 x 131.5 cm)
Part 2: 76 x 51 3/4 inches (193 x 131.5 cm)
Part 3: 76 1/8 x 51 3/4 inches (193.5 x 131.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Paradise lost cat, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

51 3/4 x 43 1/4 inches (131.5 x 109.8 cm)
Framed: 55 1/8 x 46 5/8 inches (140 x 118.5 cm)

“A drawing can be slipped between the pages of a book or folded into an envelope…. It is, by definition, an intimate medium, and no living American artist uses it more expressively than Dzama.”

—Deborah Solomon, art critic

Marcel Dzama

Surrendered like fallen rain, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

29 7/8 x 22 1/8 inches (75.9 x 56.2 cm)
Framed: 32 5/8 x 25 inches (83 x 63.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Midnight's Children, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

76 1/8 x 51 3/4 inches (193.4 x 131.4 cm)
Framed: 79 1/2 x 55 1/8 inches (202 x 140 cm)

Many of the works show figures submerged within endless expanses of water. Rendered in rich blue tones, these waterscapes appear like scenes from a surreal aquatic ballet but their never-ending waterlines serve as a visual allegory for the continued effects of climate change.

Marcel Dzama

Nearer the moon too me, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

14 1/8 x 14 inches (35.9 x 35.6 cm)
Framed: 18 3/8 x 18 3/8 inches (46.6 x 46.6 cm)

Marcel Dzama

A musical portrait of Federico Garcia Lorca, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

11 x 14 inches (27.9 x 35.6 cm)
Framed: 15 3/8 x 18 3/8 inches (39 x 46.6 cm)

Marcel Dzama

I'm on my time with everyone, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches (41.9 x 29.5 cm)
Framed: 21 x 16 1/8 inches (53.2 x 40.9 cm)

Marcel Dzama in his Brooklyn studio, 2021. Photo: Jason Schmidt

Marcel Dzama in his Brooklyn studio, 2021. Photo: Jason Schmidt

More than just a metaphor for the artist, chess has been a longtime interest for Dzama, which has figured into works throughout his career and appears in several of the works that are on view. For instance, the exhibition debuts a new sculptural diorama that resembles an elaborate stage set populated by unique ceramic and wood chess pieces.

Marcel Dzama

Marcel's palace at midnight, 2022

Wood, ceramic, graphite, ink, acrylic, and glue

17 x 28 1/4 x 15 3/4 inches (43.2 x 71.8 x 40 cm)

“Chess is basically a battle game, and for Dzama it is a metaphor for a battle that has an ever-lasting, self-repeating nature. The chess board is the stage of this violent action ... and the moves of the pieces—like the movements of dance—are artistically intriguing.”

—Sarianne Soikkonen, Chief Curator, Sara Hildén Art Museum

Marcel Dzama, Marcel's palace at midnight, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama, Marcel's palace at midnight, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama, Marcel's palace at midnight, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama, Marcel's palace at midnight, 2022 (detail)

Marcel Dzama

Red bishop #2, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

65 3/8 x 35 7/8 x 26 3/4 inches (166 x 91 x 68 cm)

The exhibition also includes several rarely exhibited "life-size chess piece” sculptures that Dzama created for his 2016 installation in the promenade of the David H. Koch Theater at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York.

Installation view, Art Series: Marcel Dzama - The tension around which history is built, New York City Ballet, Promenade of the David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York, 2016. Photo: Erin Baiano

Installation view, Art Series: Marcel Dzama - The tension around which history is built, New York City Ballet, Promenade of the David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York, 2016. Photo: Erin Baiano

Marcel Dzama and Justin Peck, 2016. Photo: Erin Baiano

Marcel Dzama and Justin Peck, 2016. Photo: Erin Baiano

Marcel Dzama, 2016. Photo: Erin Baiano

Marcel Dzama, 2016. Photo: Erin Baiano

The installation was presented in tandem with The Most Incredible Thing, a one-act ballet by Justin Peck and performed by the New York City Ballet, for which Dzama created the costumes and set design. As curator Sarianne Soikkonen explains, the project was “the largest Gesamtkunstwerk in Dzama’s career so far.”

Marcel Dzama

Red knight #1, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

65 3/4 x 29 1/8 x 24 1/2 inches (167 x 74 x 62 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Blue bishop #1, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

65 3/8 x 35 7/8 x 26 3/4 inches (166 x 91 x 68 cm)

These large sculptures recall the forms and motifs of several early twentieth-century artists including those in Fernand Léger's early abstractions, specifically Exit the Ballets Russes, and the "sieves" in the lower register of Marcel Duchamp's The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even.

Fernand Léger, Exit the Ballets Russes, 1914. © 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Fernand Léger, Exit the Ballets Russes, 1914. © 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Marcel Duchamp, The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even (The Large Glass), 1915–1923 (detail). © Estate of Richard Hamilton and Succession Marcel Duchamp/ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2022

Marcel Duchamp, The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even (The Large Glass), 1915–1923 (detail). © Estate of Richard Hamilton and Succession Marcel Duchamp/ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2022

Marcel Dzama

Blue pawn #2, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

48 x 18 7/8 x 18 7/8 inches (122 x 48 x 48 cm)

“In Dzama’s own work, such rich and sometimes chaotic backdrops, however dense, never detract from the powerful, moving and almost prophetic undertones of their unfolding scenarios. This is where the artist’s representation of the world and humanity, as well as the joy or havoc it can bestow on nature and those within it, comes to life. ”

—Duro Olowu, curator

Marcel Dzama in his Brooklyn studio, 2021. Photo: Jason Schmidt

Marcel Dzama in his Brooklyn studio, 2021. Photo: Jason Schmidt

Inquire about works by Marcel Dzama

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

An installation view of the exhibition, Marcel Dzama: Child of Midnight, at David Zwirner in London, dated 2022.

Marcel Dzama

We swam in the floods of paradise, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper in three (3) parts

Overall: 76 1/8 x 155 1/4 inches (193.5 x 394.5 cm)
Part 1: 76 x 51 3/4 inches (193.2 x 131.5 cm)
Part 2: 76 x 51 3/4 inches (193 x 131.5 cm)
Part 3: 76 1/8 x 51 3/4 inches (193.5 x 131.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

The sisters of truth, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

77 3/8 x 52 inches (196.5 x 132.1 cm)
Framed: 80 3/4 x 55 1/2 inches (205.1 x 141 cm)

Marcel Dzama

We can't be good no more, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

77 3/8 x 52 inches (196.5 x 132.1 cm)
Framed: 80 3/4 x 55 1/2 inches (205.1 x 141 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Midnight's Children, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

76 1/8 x 51 3/4 inches (193.4 x 131.4 cm)
Framed: 79 1/2 x 55 1/8 inches (202 x 140 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Under the light, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

76 1/8 x 51 3/4 inches (193.3 x 131.5 cm)
Framed: 79 1/2 x 55 1/8 inches (202 x 140 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Miracles from the gods trickle down economics, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

76 1/4 x 51 3/4 inches (193.8 x 131.5 cm)
Framed: 79 1/2 x 55 1/8 inches (202 x 140 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Untamed and intractable, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

76 1/8 x 51 3/4 inches (193.4 x 131.4 cm)
Framed: 79 1/2 x 55 1/4 inches (202 x 140.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Paradise lost cat, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

51 3/4 x 43 1/4 inches (131.5 x 109.8 cm)
Framed: 55 1/8 x 46 5/8 inches (140 x 118.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Blue bishop #1, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

65 3/8 x 35 7/8 x 26 3/4 inches (166 x 91 x 68 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Red rook #1, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

65 3/8 x 29 1/8 x 29 1/8 inches (166 x 74 x 74 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Blue pawn #2, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

48 x 18 7/8 x 18 7/8 inches (122 x 48 x 48 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Red pawn #2, 2016

Steel and industrial enamel paint

48 5/8 x 18 7/8 x 18 7/8 inches (123.5 x 48 x 48 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Marcel's palace at midnight, 2022

Wood, ceramic, graphite, ink, acrylic, and glue

17 x 28 1/4 x 15 3/4 inches (43.2 x 71.8 x 40 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Chess set, 2022

Wood and acrylic

11 x 18 1/2 x 9 5/8 inches (28 x 47 x 24.3 cm)

Marcel Dzama

My memories are heavier than a golden cat, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

29 7/8 x 22 1/8 inches (75.9 x 56.2 cm)
Framed: 32 3/4 x 25 inches (83.2 x 63.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Midnight baptism, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

29 7/8 x 22 1/8 inches (75.9 x 56.2 cm)
Framed: 32 3/8 x 25 inches (82.2 x 63.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

His music could steal your heart, and drive the animals to dance. (or She would no longer walk, but fly), 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

29 7/8 x 22 1/8 inches (75.9 x 56.2 cm)
Framed: 32 3/8 x 25 inches (82.2 x 63.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Holding on too something good, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

22 1/8 x 30 inches (56.2 x 76.2 cm)
Framed: 25 x 32 7/8 inches (63.5 x 83.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

The dance of the fire flies, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

22 1/8 x 30 inches (56.2 x 76.2 cm)
Framed: 25 x 32 7/8 inches (63.4 x 83.4 cm)

Marcel Dzama

So they say, everything gonna be alright, 2021

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

22 1/4 x 30 inches (56.5 x 76.2 cm)
Framed: 25 3/8 x 33 1/8 inches (64.5 x 84.1 cm)

Marcel Dzama

The beast and his witches with dinner, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

24 1/8 x 18 1/8 inches (61.3 x 46 cm)
Framed: 27 x 21 inches (68.5 x 53.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

The golden knights of summer, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

24 x 18 inches (61 x 45.7 cm)
Framed: 26 7/8 x 21 inches (68.4 x 53.4 cm)

Marcel Dzama

The ocean was once my friend, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

16 5/8 x 11 1/2 inches (42.2 x 29.2 cm)
Framed: 21 x 16 1/8 inches (53.2 x 40.9 cm)

Marcel Dzama

At the end of such trials, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

18 x 12 inches (45.7 x 30.5 cm)
Framed: 22 3/8 x 16 3/8 inches (56.7 x 41.7 cm)

Marcel Dzama

I'm on my time with everyone, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

16 1/2 x 11 5/8 inches (41.9 x 29.5 cm)
Framed: 21 x 16 1/8 inches (53.2 x 40.9 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Now it's summer, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

16 7/8 x 12 inches (42.9 x 30.5 cm)
Framed: 21 1/4 x 16 1/2 inches (54 x 41.8 cm)

Marcel Dzama

The moon under her feet and a crown of stars, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

15 3/4 x 12 inches (40 x 30.5 cm)
Framed: 20 1/8 x 16 3/8 inches (51.2 x 41.6 cm)

Marcel Dzama

No place to fall, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

16 7/8 x 12 1/8 inches (42.9 x 30.8 cm)
Framed: 21 1/4 x 16 1/2 inches (54 x 42 cm)

Marcel Dzama

Surrendered like fallen rain, 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

29 7/8 x 22 1/8 inches (75.9 x 56.2 cm)
Framed: 32 5/8 x 25 inches (83 x 63.5 cm)

Marcel Dzama

God save the queen (or The queen from my grandma's biscuit tin), 2022

Pearlescent acrylic ink, watercolor, and graphite on paper

29 7/8 x 22 1/8 inches (75.9 x 56.2 cm)
Framed: 32 7/8 x 25 inches (83.4 x 63.5 cm)

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