Mario Sala: Built in London

Swiss artist Mario Sala will transform 400 sq.m of gallery space at Parasol unit into two specially conceived environments for his first major exhibition in the UK from 15 October 2005 – 13 December 2005.

Built in London is a vast installation spread across the entire ground and first floors of the gallery. It will combine photography, painting and an extensive slide projection series, incorporating found objects such as old car bonnets, car roofs and cleaning materials, text fragments and newspaper pictures along with Sala’s own sculptures and paintings. The ground floor comprises a twenty two-part installation of painted and photographic works and sculpture; an auditorium and a sound piece. A second environment on the first floor comprises four parts; three small paintings and a vast leaning wooden wall stretching the length of the gallery for 24 metres and covered with red and white plastic.

Mario Sala was born in 1965 in Winterthur, Switzerland, and studied at the Schule für Gestaltung in Zürich. His work has been shown extensively in Swizerland and in Europe, most recently at the Helmhaus Zürich (2004); and at the Kunstmuseum Winterthur (2001). In June 2005 he was awarded the Swiss Art Prize by the Swiss Federal Culture Office. He lives and works in Winterthur.

Parasol unit foundation for contemporary art is housed in a former warehouse building located next to the Victoria Miro Gallery in Wharf Road, N1. Designed by leading architect Claudio Silvestrin the main ground-floor gallery opened with an exhibition of work by Belgian painter Michael Borremans in May 2005. The remaining areas of the building, including an artist-in-residence studio, reading area and café, will open in early 2006. The foundation is the brainchild of its founder and director, Ziba Ardalan. The not-for-profit space is funded by an endowment with additional support from sponsors and in-kind.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a full-colour catalogue and a programme of related events at Parasol unit.