In his debut exhibition at Varvara Roza Galleries, Asphaltos Phos, internationally acclaimed artist,
Nathaniel Rackowe presents a compelling body of work that brings bitumen (asphaltos), artificial light (phos), and materials used in construction into direct dialogue, questioning the evolving dynamics of constructed environments and our relation to them.
Rackowe comments,
“There’s that sense that, as a viewer, you may recognise the materials employed, and they will not be materials you would associate with being worthy of notice, but somehow the work reveals something new from them. That’s the drive for me.’
At the centre of the exhibition is the Shed series, works that emerge from Rackowe’s experiences of cities influx such as Beirut, where histories of construction, destruction, and renewal converge. In the gallery’s rear space, fluorescent light pieces cast a spill of industrial yellow, immersing and implicating audiences in the familiar colours of the urban landscape. Across older works and new commissions, Asphaltos Phos brings together surfaces, structures, and luminescence, inviting the viewer to reconsider the infrastructures that shape daily experience.
Asphaltos, one of the earliest known binding agents, has been used by civilizations for millennia; from ancient Mesopotamian structures to the vast asphalted expanses of modern cities. Drawing on the elemental and symbolic power of crude oil, Rackowe’s work delves into the material’s ancient origins and its contemporary role in shaping the social and spatial structures of the urban landscape. In his hands, bitumen becomes a medium that carries both geological time and the imprint of human intervention. Its weight and darkness are countered by elements of light, or ‘phos’ – the Greek word for a pure, brilliant illumination revered in antiquity as a symbol of truth, knowledge, and transcendence toward higher levels of existence – creating spatial, sensorial and philosophical juxtapositions that reflect upon our development as a species.
Across older works and new commissions, Asphaltos Phos orchestrates a structural symphony where surfaces, structures, and luminescence converge, inviting the viewer to interact with the sculptures and reconsider the overlooked textures of the urban fabric and the infrastructures that shape our daily experience. The sculptures function as spatial poems, offering a meditative commentary on modernity’s material legacy, the shaping of space, and the social phenomena tethered to energy, movement, and transformation.
Based on extensive research and spatial observation, Rackowe’s practice continues to evolve at the intersection of art and architecture, responding to the built environment while uncovering hidden narratives beneath its fabric. His artistic explorations are often paralleled to Matta Gordon-Clark’s ‘Anarchitectures’, Dan Flavin’s radical use of light, and Bruce Nauman’s pioneering environmental installations that use light and space to trigger interaction and manipulate perception. However, Rackowe’s oeuvre, deeply influenced by constructivism, neoplasticism, and the reductionist clarity of Bauhaus and De Stijl, pushes further the boundaries of the avant-garde legacies and post-minimalism offering multilayered interpretations and new aesthetic paradigms.
Ultimately, Asphaltos Phos unfolds as both an inquiry and an encounter; an exploration of matter and metaphor, of the ground we walk on and the light that guides us forward, of the darkness that frames all illumination.
The exhibition across both floors of Varvara Roza Galleries also coincides with the unveiling of Rackowe’s site specific outdoor light installation at the Royal Festival Hall, part of Southbank Centre’s Winter Light.
Curated by Vassiliki Tzanakou
Nathaniel Rackowe Asphaltos Phos 10th – 29th November 2025 Varvara Roza Galleries
Private View: 11th November, 6:30–10pm
About the artist
Nathaniel Rackowe (b. 1975, Cambridge) is a London-based artist whose large-scale light sculptures and urban-inspired structures explore the sensory experience of navigating the modern city. Using industrial materials such as glass, concrete, plastics, and scaffolding, his works capture the shifting play of light across buildings and streets, balancing stark geometry with atmospheric beauty. Influenced by Modernism, film, and video games, Rackowe reimagines the language of light beyond Minimalism to reflect the rhythms and contrasts of contemporary urban life.
Rackowe holds a BA in sculpture from Sheffield Hallam University (1998), and an MFA in Sculpture from The Slade School Of Fine Art, UCL (2001). His practice spans sculpture, installation, public art, and performance, often in collaboration with choreographer Angela Woodhouse. Recent projects include a major light installation on the Thames at London’s Royal Festival Hall (2024), a seven-city commission for Yves Saint Laurent (2022), and performances at the Oslo Opera House and the Royal Society of Sculptors (2019). He has exhibited internationally in London, Dubai, Paris, Beirut, Belgrade, and Aarhus, with permanent and temporary public artworks installed across Europe, the Middle East, and South America. Rackowe’s works are held in significant public and private collections, including the UK Government Art Collection, LVMH, Jumex (Mexico), CIFO (Miami), and the Museum of Modern Art, Lima.
