The Cabinet of Curiosities – Steffen Dam

Danish artist Steffen Dam casts glass to look as though it contains sea creatures and jellyfish in tubes. The glass panels, blocks and crystal cylinders are inspired by natural history, marine biology and Dan’s grandparents’ collection of natural science reference books and cabinets of insects. In his highly detailed “Cabinets of Curiosities”, the blown and cast glassworks mimic the conservation of various marine species.

At the crossroad of science and art, Dam « invites the viewer to relish the sheer beauty of his “specimens,” but also to reflect on the meaning of nature as a mirror of the human mind and spirit. » Like marine life specimens contained in glass panels and jars, Dam combines logic and visual poetry to create the essence of his work with glass, often impossible to decode. Blown, then flattened, cut, tweezed, torched, the glass is manipulated and cooled to look like his sketch. As an inventor, alchemist, glassblower, and a craftsman, Danish artist captures nature in his work and highlights a new perception of the world which surrounds us. « It is a gateway to our own desire to learn and consider the immensity of knowledge that leads to the understanding of our world, » writes Katya and Douglas Heller in the catalogue forward from Dam’s April 2009 Heller show, “End of my Garden”.

Considered as alter-nature specimens, Dam’s glass creations are material symbols of his imaginary universe. « My aim is to describe the world as I see it. One could also say to describe what’s not tangible and understandable with our everyday senses. » Dam says. It seems crucial to have a good balance between fiction and reality in order to keep intact the visual poetry. « My cylinders contain nothing that exists in the ocean, my specimens are plausible but not from this world, my plants are only to be found in my compost heap, and my flowers are still unnamed. »

All images courtesy Heller Gallery.

Discover more of Steffen Dam work on his website.