The first retrospective in Spain of the work of British-born, New York-based artist Anthony McCall (St. Paul’s Cray, 1946) is to be presented by Barcelona’s new contemporary art space, Fundació Gaspar, located in a newly renovated early-15th-century gothic palace. Curated by Gloria Moure, the show explores how the artist’s practice challenges homogeny and the idea of beauty as well as the concepts of sculpture and performance.

The exhibition, titled Solid Lights and Performance, gathers important film works alongside ‘solid-light’ installations, for which the artist is best known, including the premiere of the new work “Coming About” (2016), created especially for the occasion. As the artist’s other ‘solid-light’ installations, the new piece explores the sculptural qualities of the light emitted by film projectors, bridging the boundaries between the material and immaterial, while keeping to the essential qualities of film: light and time.

Encompassing the full range of expressive media used by Anthony McCall, the exhibition highlights the interactivity of the works as well as the artist’s use of space as a visual and plastic element rather than a neutral container. The exhibition is accompanied by a consultation room devoted to his works on paper, drawings, schematic diagrams, photographs and projects for open-air spaces.

The show opens on May 31, and can be visited until October 30.