Anish Kapoor’s retrospective is currently on display at the Hayward Gallery in London. It was here, in 1998, that the artist held his first British exhibition. Now, he has returned to command the entire space of the gallery. The exhibition will showcase his work from the last 30 years.
The great contemporary sculptor Anish Kapoor remains true to his vision—the exhibition features many of the artist’s iconic works. Here you will find massive mirrored sculptures that distort reality, monumental installations that overwhelm the viewer with their scale, and sculptures coated in a special substance that absorbs 99,96% of light—Vantablack.
However, while the older works clearly establish the artist’s aesthetic, the pieces created in the last few years deserve a separate mention. The monumental installation All of Nothing—a gigantic inflatable red PVC membrane that fills a six-meter space—forces visitors to literally squeeze along the walls, making them feel minuscule.
Nearby is a striking installation titled «Mount Moriah at the Gates of the Ghetto, ” which premiered at the 2022 Venice Biennale. The four-ton structure hangs from the ceiling mere centimeters above the floor. The title alludes to Mount Moriah in the Bible and to the actual Venetian ghetto located near Palazzo Manfredi, where the work was exhibited four years ago. Capur creates an astonishing structure, with red color flowing like blood or lava.
Overall, red is the artist’s signature color, simultaneously signifying celebration, life, and yet also horror and danger. Throughout his work, the artist explores this duality. In this regard, the piece by Ha Makom—a crimson landscape featuring a black portal at its center—deserves particular attention. The title translates from Hebrew as «place,» and in the artist’s conception, it recalls the presence of the divine. Kapur’s work does not require specialized training; the artist speaks to the viewer in a language everyone understands: discomfort, fear, surprise, dizziness. The exhibition compels one to question their own perception—how can an object both exist and disappear simultaneously? Where is the line between the real and the illusory?
Anish Kapoor
June 16 — October 18, 2026
Hayward Gallery, United Kingdom
