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Abigail Fallis

DNA DL90, 2003

Trolleys and steel 939 × 300 × 300 cm

This sculpture by British artist Abigail Fallis consists of 22 shopping trolleys in the shape of a double helix. The work was commissioned by a supermarket chain in 2003 on the 50th anniversary of American biologist James Watson and English physicist Francis Crick’s discovery of DNA’s double-helix structure, which was based on Rosalind Franklin’s X-ray diffraction images of DNA. Their findings were fundamental to the understanding of muscular dystrophy. The commission served to raise awareness of the disease and, according to Fallis, the trolleys are a symbol of modern society’s consumer culture, which she believes has become entwined in an individual’s genetic make-up. 

Courtesy Pangolin London

Biography

Abigail Fallis (b.1968, London) studied silversmithing and metalwork at Camberwell College of Arts (1996-99). The making process is crucial to Fallis’ practice and she experiments with diverse, often recycled, materials including papier mâché, everyday objects, fish skeletons, neon and bronze. Fallis refers to her sculptures as ‘thinking tools’ and her work combines searching questions – about contemporary life, the environment and our consumerism – with her sense of humour. 

Fallis has exhibited widely throughout the UK and her work can be found in a number of public and private collections including Hix restaurants and Damien Hirst’s Murderme collection. In 2016 Fallis became a member of the Royal Society of Sculptors. She lives and works in Gloucestershire. 

Images:
1.Vassilis Skopelitis
2.Charlotte Booth
3.Vassilis Skopelitis

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