Helidon Xhixha
Project for Bliss, 2016
Ink on paper
Further images
Project for Bliss, 2016 Winner of The Public Medal London Design Biennale Somerset House, London, UK Inspired by Plato’s most influential work The Republic, where the Greek philosopher worked...
Project for Bliss, 2016
Winner of The Public Medal
London Design Biennale
Somerset House, London, UK
Inspired by Plato’s most influential work The Republic, where the Greek philosopher worked hard to immaculately develop his ‘Ideal City’, Helidon Xhixha applied the use of concentric circles into his own sculpture. The shape of the sculpture, with its benches oscillating outwards from the center, draws clear inspiration from the Renaissance ideal cities. The benches offer a place for interaction and engagement with one another, reflecting the need for a sense of community and unification within society. Sitting on the benches and looking into the central mirrors, we are forced into a position of interaction with the people around us and with our own reflection. Xhixha’s structure reflects not only ourselves, but the others who chose to sit on the benches.
Xhixha’s “Bliss” is a sculptor’s attempt to answer the problems which Europe currently faces, it is a commentary on the individual as well as diversity within the community, and references a rich history of utopian ideals.