Mat Chivers ‘Untitled I & II’
cast aluminium, 25 x 30 x 15 cm  /  25 x 30 x 20 cm


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A number of physical models were made where parameters were defined and a process set in motion. Using a combination of three or four equilateral triangles joined in an open configuration so that they partially enclose space. Chivers injected polyurethane foam into the void which then expanded, constrained by the containing geometry, matter expanding over time and in space until its energy balances with the physical variables that constitute it and the environment in which it was formed and its growth ceases. He then selected two objects from this series that he believed presented the most dynamic and archetypal forms which were then cast in aluminium The driving idea behind this group of sculptural works is that material phenomena are governed or defined by fundamental geometric principles. Bringing together two timelessly relevant and poetically rich ideas - symmetry in the form of a pure geometric framework and asymmetry as expressed through an entropic event.

Mat Chivers is a British artist born in Bristol, England in 1973. He currently works in Devon, UK and Toronto, Canada. Chivers’ artwork examines how fundamental phenomena that exist below the surface of things informs the way we experience the world around us. For Chivers, the process of making draws on combinations of analogue and digital technologies in works that embody a hybridisation of old-world and contemporary envisioning and production processes. Mat Chivers sculpture often incorporates the use of heavy, solid and dense media such as metal or stone, shifting the context of the raw material to reflect an ephemeral an indeterminate subject matter from cloud formations, waves data or altering climactic statistics. Through the materiality of his sensuous sculptures, drawings, prints and performance, he offers the viewer an alternative view of these notions.

The use of indeterminate forms to disrupt a determinate geometric pattern (or vice versa) has a mesmeric effect on our visual perception. From some perspectives the objects seem recognisable, from others they have an ambiguous quality as the forms are visually eroded by the geometry in the base material. This perceptual phenomenon acts as a metaphor for the contemporary digital moment in terms of how envisioning technology gives us a way of seeing elements in the world but simultaneously fragments it, unable to describe the totality of the relationships involved.

Chivers studied Fine Art at Nottingham Trent University and Escula de belles Artes, Barcelona (1993-6). A formative influence on Chivers’ practice are the years that he spent working and travelling in Southern Europe and Morocco, culminating in a journey overland to Iran, Pakistan, India & Nepal where he spent time in the mountains of the Hindu Kush, Zanskar and Himalaya. On his return to the UK he established a studio in Devon where he is now based but travels regularly on international artist residencies. His placement at the Nirox Residency in South Africa and the Kappatos Residency in Athens both culminated in major solo exhibitions. He has been involved in numerous cross-disciplinary projects with research scientists at The University of Bristol. His site-specific film work ‘Purbeck Vanitas’ was shown in 2012 as part of the commissioned project ExLab in conjunction with the Cultural Olympiad and The National Trust at the coastal UNESCO designated World Heritage site in Dorset. In 2014 he completed 'Axiom' a major public commission for the Mathematical Institute in Oxford. His work also features in many other collections internationally notably including the Berengo Collection, Italy, Crisis UK, Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge, Mochary Collection, USA, Thelma Hulbert Gallery, Soho House and The Met Office. Chivers has been included in numerous high profile international exhibitions including ‘Daydreaming with Stanley Kubrick’ at Somerset House, 'Air: Visualising the Invisible in British Art 1768-2017’ at the RWA, Bristol, 'A Place In Time’ at Nirox Sculpture Park, South Africa, Premio Fondazione Henraux, Italy, 'Out Of Our Heads' in London, 'The Knowledge' at the Gervasuti Foundation, 54th Venice Biennale and 'Glasstress: White Light/White Heat', Pallazo Cavalli Franchett at the 55th Venice Biennale and a solo presentation at the Venice Biennale the same year titled 'Satyr' in association with Venice Arts Factory. Most recently Chivers has worked in Canada producing the major exhibition ‘Migrations’ at Musee D’art De Joilette and Arsenal Contemporary Art Montreal.