PRESS RELEASE January 2017
Stuart Semple releases
‘a better BLACK’ and declares ‘colour amnesty’ with Anish Kapoor
BLACK v1.0 (beta) is the flattest, mattest, blackest art material on the planet – and it is available worldwide for £16.99 exclusively from www.culturehustle.com Today British artist Stuart Semple announced his latest creation in the ongoing colour war with Anish Kapoor, releasing a beta-version of his ‘better’ BLACK – which as a coating creates a phenomenal ‘black hole’ effect, with results almost precisely those of the ‘world’s blackest black’ – VantaBlack. “It’s a beta version, so it’s not perfect, but it’s totally usable and exciting. It’s good, very good. It’s already the flattest, mattest art material on the planet – so now it’s time to share it. But, I’m hoping a vibrant community of artists will help take it to the next level and make it the ultimate for all of us.” Stuart Semple VantaBlack is the blackest known material in the world thanks to its composition of microscopic vertical tubes that continually deflect light – trapping and absorbing all but 0.035% of it. Since Anish Kapoor acquired exclusive rights to use the substance for artistic purposes, the art world has eagerly awaited his first artistic offering, but was disappointed when it was revealed he had collaborated with luxury watch designers MCT on a $95,000 limited edition (just 10) timepiece incorporating VantaBlack backing, covered by reflective glass. Meanwhile, Semple has – in the wake of the notorious PINK and DIAMOND DUST – created a usable, ‘better’, BLACK. Unlike VantaBlack, Semple’s BLACK is affordable, paintable and crucially non-toxic, therefore exportable worldwide. BLACK V1.0 (beta) is also the world’s first open-source art material, with the pigment separated from its base to give artists an almost infinite set of possibilities in creating their own paints. He is hoping they will share their findings with him to enable following versions of the material to be even better. The release of BLACK follows an ongoing colour feud between Kapoor and Semple, starting in 2014 (when Anish Kapoor secured exclusive rights to use VantaBlack in art) and reaching a peak last November when Semple released the world’s pinkest PINK – along with a specific legal agreement: “By adding this product to your cart you confirm that you are not Anish Kapoor, you are in no way affiliated to Anish Kapoor, you are not purchasing this item on behalf of Anish Kapoor or an associate of Anish Kapoor. To the best of your knowledge, information and belief this paint will not make it's way into the hands of Anish Kapoor.”
PRESS RELEASE January 2017
A social media movement and the #sharetheblack hashtag were born – and when Kapoor illegally acquired the PINK (it was later discovered that the culprit was his gallery, Lisson), famously posting a photo of his middle finger dipped in the substance with the caption ‘Up Yours’, the online art community was further enraged. Semple responded by releasing the world's glitteriest glitter, ‘DIAMOND DUST’, made of tiny shards of glass to prevent another finger dipping incident. BLACK is a natural next chapter in what has become an industry saga. “I’m unbelievably happy to be able to contribute this substance to artmaking. The Vanta guys aren't going to make a black we can use, or share what they’ve got with us any time soon. Unless you’re a super-rich artist you just don't have a chance! So, I’ve ripped paint apart and put it back together again to make something I really hope people use and love. I can’t wait to see all the imaginative ways BLACK will be used, I’m sure artists can come up with much more interesting ideas than expensive wristwatches.” SS
BLACK is the result of deep collaboration between Semple and his crack team of colour chemists, cosmetics innovators and experts from the architectural coatings world. The substance comes in two parts: a super-black ultra matt, micronized pigment with a lightfastness that lasts thousands of years; and a ‘super base’ (acrylic copolymer medium) that smells of black cherry. In simple terms, the base is unique in that its molecular structure leaves room to super-load it with pigment, so it’s capable of carrying more pigment than any other art material. “We’ve had amazing black pigments in art for hundreds if not thousands of years – that’s not the issue. The issue has been with the medium that holds that pigment. Acrylic paint is quite new; it’s only really been since the ’50s that we’ve had workable acrylics. I’ve been using a super-flat base in my own work for about a decade. I’ve been able to tap into new developments in the cosmetics industry (in mattifiers) to totally re-build my base into a super base that takes serious amounts of pigment without breaking, but reflects almost no light.” SS Semple has written to Kapoor suggesting a colour amnesty, requesting an apology, so far without response. He suggested “perhaps he even write some lines on Instagram - ‘I will be nice, I will share my colours’.” But he hasn’t. “This whole colour war has gone too far,” Semple said. “He’s hoarding the black to make wristwatches, run off with my PINK and given everyone the finger. We’ve got a better black now so it’s time to bury the hate.” BLACK V1.0 (beta) is available from today from www.culturehustle.com to all artists worldwide (except Anish – until he says sorry and gives Stuart his PINK back) for £16.99.
High res images: http://albums.phanfare.com/isolated/IecmHxtC/1/14420656
PRESS RELEASE January 2017
EDITORS NOTES Stuart Semple Stuart Semple is one of the UK’s leading post YBA artists. Perhaps best known for his HappyCloud performance from Tate Modern, where he flooded the London skyline with pink smiley soap clouds. Semple has held 15 critically acclaimed solo exhibitions internationally in Hong Kong, New York, Los Angeles and Milan. He has featured in over 50 group exhibitions alongside artists such as Peter Doig, Basquiat, Warhol, Richard Prince, Ai Wei Wei and The Chapman Brothers. Semple has been featured across the media in The Times, Modern Painters, Italian Vogue, i-D, Financial Times and many others. He has presented for the BBC and spoken at Oxford University, ICA, Denver Art Museum, Southbank Center & Irish Museum of Modern Art. Stuart is an ambassador for Mind, the mental health charity. www.stuartsemple.com Twitter & Instagram : @stuartsemple
MEDIA ENQUIRIES For further information, interviews or images please contact Tani Burns: T: +44 (0)207 377 5665 M: +44 (0)7888 731 419 E: tani@tburnsarts.com W: www.tburnsarts.com FB: TBurnsArts on Facebook TW: @tburnsarts