SALLA TYKKÄ: AIRS ABOVE THE GROUND
HAYWARD GALLERY PROJECT SPACE
PRIVATE VIEW 19 NOVEMBER
20 NOVEMBER – 2 JANUARY
Airs Above the Ground is a new film by the Finnish artist Salla Tykkä (b. 1973, Helsinki) that focuses on the Lipizzan horse, the oldest extant pedigree breed in Europe. These rare animals are born with dark coats, which gradually turn lighter until they are completely white. Developed in the 16th century with the support of the Habsburg monarchy, which ruled both Austria and Spain, the breed became closely associated with the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. Lipizzan stallions are bred to perform haute école or ‘high school’ classical dressage, including the stylized and highly controlled jumps and poses known as ‘airs above the ground’.
Featuring footage of young foals running through seemingly wild woodland and adult stallions completing balletic feats of dressage, Tykkä’s film explores the uncertain line between nature and culture. It might also be read as an investigation into past and present anxieties regarding class, race, and (genetic) destiny. As much an aural as a visual experience, Airs Above the Ground (1749) features a set of sounds that evoke power, control and grandeur: breath forced from a horse’s lungs, the stamp of shod hooves on packed earth, and the Agnus Dei from J.S. Bach’s Mass in B Minor (1749)
Curator: Tom Morton
LINKSTimeout review of Airs Above the Ground
Guardian online piece on Tykkä, on the occassion of her Hayward show
Another Magazine feature on Airs Above the Ground
Artist's website
Review of the artist's work in frieze magazine
Hayward Gallery / Southbank Centre website
