Forms of Recollection: Storied 1989

Harriet Bart made this sculpture, “Forms of Recollection: Storied”, and I’m struck by the repetition and layering of the book forms. It's all about process, about building up and accumulating. Looking at the surface, you can see the texture – each book is individual, but together they form a collective whole. I love how the monochrome palette gives it a kind of quietness, a sense of contemplation. There’s a specific book near the base of the spiral which seems slightly askew, and this imperfection is so important. It gives the whole piece a kind of vulnerability, hinting at the fragility of memory. It reminds me of the work of Anselm Kiefer, actually, in its use of materials and its exploration of history. For me, art is all about this kind of ongoing conversation, where artists build on each other's ideas and create something new. There's no one right way to read a piece, it's all about embracing the ambiguity.