Mappa Mundi

About the book

Sculptor Simeon Nelson’s exhibition project 'Mappa Mundi' looked at human attempts to define, order and classify nature thought the ages, and questioned how man’s understanding of the natural world has evolved in relation to the changing fashions of scientific and artistic enquiry.

More about the book

For Nelson, the 'mental map' that each of us constructs to define our position in relation to the world is an important metaphor and a useful key to understanding his work. His artworks attempt to re-establish harmony between man and nature.
Combining an intuitive sense of form with anthropological research, Nelson attempts to convey the world as he sees it - a non-European with overlapping interests in ornamental systems as diverse as Maori facial tattoo and Jacobean decoration.
The reworking of minimalist forms in a highly ornamental way articulates a critique of the banality of purist abstraction and the tendency of such (masculine) abstraction to ignore more emotional, embodied (feminine) aspects of experience.
This book is fully illustrated throughout with colour photos of Nelson’s beautiful and intriguing sculptures.
Simeon Nelson was born in the UK but educated in Australia where he studied sculpture at the National Art School. He is currently a Senior Lecturer in Sculpture and Spatial Design at the University of Hertfordshire. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts.
About the Author/s:
Matthew Shaul

Matthew Shaul is director at Departure Lounge, a contemporary photographic gallery.
Gyonata Bonvicini

Gyonata Bonvicini was born in 1972 in Codogno, Milan and he currently lives and works in Berlin.
He holds a doctorate in Contemporary Art History from the University of Parma and has spent the last ten years working with public and commercial art organisations in Europe.
He was Project Manager and Director of Westlondonprojects as well as Project Manager of Artprojx, engaged in initiating and executing exhibition programs, maintaining up-to-date information on contemporary art trends, and producing catalogues and publications.
Alongside this, he has independently curated a number of exhibitions and screenings, including:
- La petite histoire at Kunstraum Niederösterreich (Wien, 2008)
- Evil Sisters at Canal at Peer (London, 2007)
- The Endless Summer at Westlondonprojects (London, 2006)
- Three Cities: Berlin, Milan, London (along with Anna-Catharina Gebbers and Paolo Zani, 2006)
- Le Retour de la Colonne Durutti at Galerie Isabella Bortolozzi (Berlin, 2006)
- Jaybird at Zero… (Milan, 2005)
- Illusion of Security, a project for the Prague Biennale 1
Since 2002, he has been a regular contributor to the publications Flash Art Magazine and Aroundphotography.

ISBN: 978-1-898543-93-0 Format: Paperback, 40pp Published: Jul 2005

Mappa Mundi

About the book

Matthew Shaul

Gyonata Bonvicini

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