London-based multidisciplinary artist and designer Yinka Ilori best known for his vibrant, colourful, and joyful public interventions launches ‘Filtered Rays’, his first permanent installation in Berlin, Germany on the banks of the Spree in front of the Estrel Berlin Hotel in Neukölln.
One of Europe’s largest hotels, the Estrel Berlin has a rich history of supporting artists. The owners Dr. Sigrid and Ekkehard Streletzki have created an art enclave at the Estrel with a display of some of the most prominent German and international artists displayed in the atrium and throughout the hotel. The Estrel Berlin invited Ilori to create a permanent, site-specific pavilion in front of the hotel. A project that has been in the making since the pandemic, this large-scale installation is one of Ilori’s first architectural structures. It features re-used scaffolding and translucent, conical discs made from recyclable PTFE membrane which overlap to form a colourful canopy overhead in his signature colour palette.
Ilori’s installation explores how architecture, material and colour can create a new perspective for audiences. He invites hotel guests and passersby to wander through the maze-like structure, which provides brief moments of intimacy and meditation. Gazing upwards towards the sky, visitors can experience how the light and colourful plastic discs in red, burgundy, yellow and green change their perception of the outside world.
Yinka Ilori, said: “When viewing architecture, audiences often look up towards the ceiling or the sky, it seems like an instinctual way to experience physical structures. With ‘Filtered Rays’, I wanted to play with material, light and colour to manipulate this experience and create moments where your view of the outside is completely transformed.”
‘Filtered Rays’ will be freely accessible to the public and throughout July, August and September, Estrel Berlin will be hosting yoga, meditation, dance and art workshops for young people, encouraging them to experience Ilori’s work in a new way. Further information about the workshops will be available from the beginning of July 2022 on the Estrel Berlin website: www.estrel.com
About Yinka Ilori
Yinka Ilori is a multi-disciplinary artist and designer whose bold visual language draws on his British-Nigerian heritage to convey new narratives through contemporary design. Drawing on Nigerian parables and verbal traditions, Ilori touches on a multitude of themes that resonate with a global audience. His work is underpinned by the belief that art and design should be accessible to all. Humorous, provocative and playful, his projects demonstrate how design can bring together communities and have a positive impact on society, evoking a sense of joy and optimism. Often using the city as his canvas, he reimagines spaces to encourage a sense of community and invites audiences to engage and participate in his work and its surroundings.
A graduate of London Metropolitan University’s BA in Furniture and Product Design, Ilori’s work has been showcased globally through solo and group exhibitions, public commissions and set and exhibition design.
Photos: Linus Muellerschoen
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