Six things to do at Olafur Eliasson: In real life

1. Dance in colour!
Cast crazy colourful shadows on the wall in Your uncertain shadow (colour) 2010. We challenge you not to dance.

2. Play with toys!
Olafur wants you to interact with his artwork and even make your own! Join hundreds of other visitors to create a constantly evolving 3-D structure out of Zometool construction sets.

3. See science sculptures!
A strobe light transforms a bubbling water fountain into momentary sculptures inside a pitch black room.

4. Eat art!
Olafur hasn’t just created an awesome exhibition. He’s also designed a menu! Visitors can try food based on the organic, vegetarian and locally sourced meals served in his Berlin studio. Yum!

5. Touch a rainbow
By shining white light on a fine spray of water, Olafur has created a shimmering rainbow. And if you stand in just the right spot, you’ll see stripes of colour and feel the mist!

6. Journey through a cloud
Walk through a fog-filled tunnel, where your vision is restricted to just an arm’s length and the air tastes sweet! Will you be nervous, excited or something else?!

The Glacier Melt Series!

In 1999, Olafur travelled to Iceland to photograph its glaciers. This summer, 20 years after the original series of photos were taken, the artist re-visited and photographed the very same glaciers in Iceland.

The results were dramatic…

These new pictures will be on display at London’s Tate Modern from the end of November, demonstrating the effects of climate change on the landscape.

Poster comp winner

Back in the summer, we asked you lot to design an exhibition poster, inspired by the themes in Olafur’s work.

We had loads of incredible entries, but the winner was six-year old Charlotte Xin Yi Waterman, with her ambitious design featuring tomato plant leaves and recycled card!

Judge Mark Godfrey, Tate’s senior curator,* was impressed that Charlotte used some of the same materials as Olafur, including mirrors, recycled materials and LEGO. “Charlotte’s illustrations of the Sun and natural environment were relevant to the themes in Olafur’s art,” he said.

*A curator is the person who helps organise and take care of an exhibition.

The prize

Charlotte and her family won a trip to Berlin in Germany to visit Olafur’s studio. They had a tour of his workplace and even ate some of his yummy food. Charlotte’s poster is now on display in the studio. How cool is that?!

Head to tate.org.uk/eliasson to book tickets and discover more!

Ticket Prices: Under 12s go free. £5 for 12-16s. £5 for 16-25 year olds. Adult Price: £18 (£17 concessions)

Olafur Eliasson Your uncertain shadow (colour), 2010. Photo: María del Pilar García Ayensa / Studio Olafur Eliasson. Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection, Vienna © 2010 Olafur Eliasson

Olafur Eliasson The structural evolution project, 2001. Installation view: SESC Pompeia, São Paulo, 2011. Hamburger Kunsthalle. Permanent loan Stiftung Hamburger Kunstsammlungen. Photo: Olafur Eliasson © 2001 Olafur Eliasson

Olafur Eliasson Big Bang Fountain 2014. Installation view at Moderna Museet, Stockholm 2015. Photo: Anders Sune Berg. Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York/Los Angeles © 2014 Olafur Eliasson

SOE Kitchen at Tate Modern’s Terrace Bar. SOE Kitchen collaboration with Tate Eats for Olafur Eliasson: In real life. Photo credit: Alcuin Stevenson / Studio Olafur Eliasson

Olafur Eliasson Beauty 1993 Installation view at Moderna Museet, Stockholm, 2015. Photo: Anders Sune Berg. Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles © 1993 Olafur Eliasson

Olafur Eliasson Din blinde passager (Your blind passenger), 2010. Installation view: Tate Modern, London, 2019. Photo: Anders Sune Berg. Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles © 2010 Olafur Eliasson

Detail of The glacier melt series, 1999/2019. Courtesy of the artist; neugerriemschneider, Berlin; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York / Los Angeles © 2019 Olafur Eliasson

Photo of Charlotte: María del Pilar García Ayensa

Likes