Steve McQueen, the acclaimed artist and filmmaker, will feature a new work co-commissioned by Dia and Schaulager at an upcoming exhibition at Dia Beacon, opening on May 12th, 2024. The work, which is still untitled, is described by McQueen as “his most abstract work to date” and a reflection on “the nature of time and cinema”; it will occupy the entire lower level of the former factory building.

The new work will consist of “a large-scale projection that envelops viewers in a dynamic field of light and sound.” The work will explore the relationship between image and sound, movement and stillness, and presence and absence, creating a sensory experience that challenges the conventions of cinematic storytelling. The work will also draw on McQueen's personal history and his interest in social and political issues, such as race, violence, and memory.

The exhibition at Dia Beacon is complemented by a concurrent presentation of McQueen's Sunshine State (2022) at Dia Chelsea, which opens in September 2024. Sunshine State is a two-channel video installation that juxtaposes footage of Florida's natural landscape with scenes from Hollywood movies filmed in the state. The work examines how cinema shapes our perception of reality and how reality can be manipulated by cinematic techniques. The new monitor-based work, which has not been revealed yet, will be shown alongside Sunshine State in the adjacent gallery at Dia Chelsea.

The two-part exhibition of McQueen's work is curated by Donna De Salvo, senior adjunct curator, special projects, with Emily Markert, curatorial assistant, and Randy Gibson, manager of exhibitions and collections at Dia. It is the first major presentation of McQueen's work in the United States since his retrospective at the Art Institute of Chicago in 2012. More information about this exhibition and other events happening at Dia Art can be found on their website.

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