DOMAGK

This abstract-biomorphic bronze sculpture is reminiscent of an encounter between identical forces of nature, such as two tornados or whirlpools merging together. The twisted multilayered bronze structures rise up on two legs to meet in the middle of the sculpture and unite into a single enormous mass. While the individual layers mesh into each other and form a single vortex here, both distinct currents remain recognizable and separate from each other again at the top (with the exception of a few remaining points of contact). The sculpture belongs to a group of works that incorporate complex mass designs and are made out of wood, stone, glass, modern plastics like fiberglass or Kevlar and, as is the case here, bronze. The surface is covered with a turquoise-green patina that not only evokes associations with water or clouds, but also contributes to a vivid interplay of light and shadow. Viewers see the defined flows of energy depicted by this interplay and think they are seeing additional silhouettes, some of which are reminiscent of human profiles – an effect that Cragg uses frequently in his sculptures.
The bronze sculpture was commissioned by Bayer AG to commemorate the important research done by Bayer scientist and Nobel Laureate for Medicine Gerhard Domagk. On the occasion of its 150-year anniversary in 2013, Bayer donated the work to the Kunst- und Museumsverein Wuppertal to be installed at the zoo across from the scientist’s former home.