Antony Gormley, Tadao Ando question humanity's place in the world with artistic space Ground

Created by British sculptor Antony Gormley and Japanese architect Tadao Ando — a rather sensational pairing — Ground is a meditative space with a touch of wit, striving to question humanity’s place in nature and the cosmos.

British sculptor Antony Gormley sits with his "Blockwork" sculpture at Ground, a new permanent space, created in collaboration between Gormley and Japanese architect Tadao Ando, at Museum SAN in Wonju, Gangwon. The space officially opened to the public on Friday. [MUSEUM SAN]

WONJU, Gangwon — In the rolling landscape of Museum SAN, where towering art and architecture stretch across a verdant mountaintop, an unassuming, gray entryway has emerged on a field of neatly trimmed grass. Descending its spiraling staircase leads to the museum’s newest addition: an underground concrete chamber, simply called Ground.

Created by British sculptor Antony Gormley and Japanese architect Tadao Ando — a rather sensational pairing — Ground is a meditative space with a touch of wit, striving to question humanity’s place in nature and the cosmos.

Gormley’s seven "Blockworks" — cast iron sculptures that depict the human form in various poses — are scattered throughout Ando’s Pantheon-inspired dome, a circular space measuring 25 meters (82 feet) in diameter.

Antony Gormley's seven "Blockworks" are installed in the concerete dome designed by Tadao Ando dubbed Ground. [MUSEUM SAN]

The entrance to Ground, a new permanent space made in collaboration with British sculptor Antony Gormley and Japanese architect Tadao Ando, at Museum SAN [LEE JIAN]

Their collaboration at Museum SAN, set to be a permanent fixture, marks a first between the two artists who have received critical acclaim in their respective fields for expressions that don't merely take up space but activate the mind.

“These still, silent sculptures here are, in a way, just waiting for you [the viewers] — your thoughts and movement around them,” Gormley told reporters on Thursday at Museum SAN, one day before Ground's official public opening.

“It may be presumptuous for me to say that they will exist here for the next 100, 200 years, but still, it is most fascinating to think about how this space will be used by its visitors and also evolve [...] how all the elements will be allowed to express themselves through time.”

Antony Gormley speaks to the press about his art at Museum SAN in Wonju, Gangwon, on Thursday. [MUSEUM SAN]

Now 72, Gormley is widely regarded as one of the most celebrated sculptors of his generation, best known for outdoor works that engage directly with nature and the public realm.

His “Field for the British Isles,” which consists of 40,000 mini terracotta figurines handmade by 100 volunteers, won him the prestigious Turner Prize, presented by the Tate museum, in 1994. The colossal 208-ton, 20-meter-tall (66-foot-tall) and 54-meter-wide steel installation “Angel of the North” (1998), overlooking a highway near Gateshead, England, is another defining work by Gormley.

Also, particularly invested in his meditations on the human body, Gormley began casting himself in plaster during the early years of his career. Before committing to the sculpture, he reportedly traveled to India and Sri Lanka and considered becoming a monk. More recently, his work has moved toward more deconstructed forms, departing from traditional notions of sculpture as representation or idealization.

“I have always wanted to put work into situations of real life — on the road, beach, mountains and on top of city buildings, and always on the horizon and skyline,” Gormley said. “[I believe] we've drifted into this situation where the institution and the market have controlled art and the opportunity to engage with art. But this is not its normal place. The reflexivity of art should be part of daily life and lived with.

“Art is the way that life expresses itself — a way we could engage more fully with life. So I’ve always sought to find ways of working directly with the world.”

In this sense, Gormley described his collaboration with Ando at Museum SAN as a “precious opportunity.”

As the winner of the 1995 Pritzker Architecture Prize, Ando is known for his sophisticated workings of space and light with notable works including the Church of the Light in Osaka, the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth in Texas and the LG Arts Center in Seoul.

The Japanese architect was commissioned to build Museum SAN over a decade ago by the Hansol Cultural Foundation, which was established by Samsung Group’s founder Lee Byung-chull’s eldest daughter, Lee In-hee, in 1995. Museum SAN opened in 2013 atop a mountain, aiming to provide respite and freedom for the mind and body and inspire creativity.

At Ground, the connection between the museum, Gormley and Ando is collectively realized into a full-body experience.

An interactive, musical performance is being played out at Museum SAN's new space, Ground [MUSEUM SAN]

Upon entering the dome, there is an immediate sense of autonomy and freedom as visitors roam around the sparsely placed seven human-shaped iron blocks. Visitors are naturally led to choose a sculpture and walk up to it. Though the pieces are inanimate, each one begs for connection — crouched in a corner, lying face down, lying face up or standing with its back hunched. Some viewers may choose to hover in the same position and take photos of the blocks. Others may want to quietly take a moment with each one individually.

Ando’s dome heightens awareness with the reverberations that produce multiple mini echoes with even the softest step. The small, circular window at the center of the dome’s ceiling lets in a sort of ethereal spotlight on a sunny day. The mouth of the cave opens to a mountain view.

Museum SAN's new space, Ground [MUSEUM SAN]

“[Through this space], I wanted to question where humans fit in the grand scheme of things — nature and the cosmos. But the answer isn’t in the sculptures themselves; it lies in the viewer,” Gormley said. “The subject of the work is the viewer's experience. I perceive this work as the foundation of that experience and the viewer’s body.”

Museum SAN is also holding a solo exhibition of Gormley’s pieces at its main exhibition hall, unveiled the same day as Ground and slated to run through Nov. 30.

“Drawing on Space” showcases Gormley’s works from the past 40 years, claiming to be the largest exhibition of the artist’s works to be held in Korea to date.

It includes the “Liminal Field” sculpture series (2015), a sculptural series that outlines the human form using aluminum bars welded into circular patterns. These airy structures resemble clusters of soap bubbles, evoking a fragile, ephemeral quality as if they might pop at any moment.

Antony Gormley's "Liminal Field" sculpture series (2015) are on display at the artist's solo exhibit "Drawing on Space" at Museum SAN, set to run through Nov. 30. [MUSEUM SAN]

Gormley's two-dimensional “Body and Soul” series (1990), featuring prints made from various parts of his own body, and “Run” (2021), painted with blood, continue the artist's probe into the human anatomy.

The central work in the exhibition is “Orbit Field II” (2024), which weaves giant aluminum hoops, seemingly arbitrarily, stretches from wall to wall and brushes the ceiling. Visitors are invited to duck and dive through the space, becoming part of the work itself.

Antony Gormley's "Orbit Field II" (2024) on display at his ongoing solo exhibit in Museum SAN[MUSEUM SAN]

“Sculptures are a palpable, physical experience,” Gormley said, emphasizing their importance in the modern tech age. “This is a worldwide, unpoliced social experiment in which our tools are taking charge. Wet brains will not be replaced by dry ones.

“If we are to survive, we must recognize that we are part of the biosphere and that lives are totally entangled. Our bodies are unbelievably autonomous instruments, unknowable as the cosmos. I see sculptures as a vital instrument in reengaging with the body.”

Unlike paintings, which produce an image of the world, “sculptures ask the world to accommodate — to change the world.”

Museum SAN is open every day except Mondays, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The basic entrance fee costs 22,000 won ($16).

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]