Who is Roni Horn?

Roni Horn is one of the most influential American artists alive today. Born in 1955, she grew up during the emergence of Minimalism – an art movement characterised by clean lines and geometric shapes; it was dominated by male artists, including Donald Judd and Carl Andre. Since the 1990s Horn has been creating cast-glass sculptures, such as Pink Tons (pictured) from 2009. These strange objects that float between liquid and solid, reference the characteristics of Minimalism, but also subvert them and additionally - speak to her experience as a gay woman. Discover more about this work in our film presented by teacher Aleid Farnum-Ford in Spotlight: Art and LBGTQI+. 

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how Roni Horn's sculptures are made? It involves a complex, almost alchemy-like process, which takes place over many months. First, coloured molten glass is poured into moulds and is then left to cool down slowly. The exteriors are left with the impression of the mould, but the tops of her sculptures are highly polished using fire, resulting in a crystal surface which symbolizes a pool of water. Horn considers water a universal symbol for change and she uses it to reference the fluidity of gender in her works. See more of her glass sculptures at Hauser&Wirth, New York, open 28 June.