SEAMARK (for Old Admiralty Building)

Location

Country: UK
City: London
Place: Department for International Trade, Old Admiralty Building

SEAMARK, a large ceramic wall by Tania Kovats, is a commissioned work for the Old Admiralty Building, the home for the Government Art Collection and Department for International Trade. The work is produced on handmade ceramic tiles that are glazed with cobalt blue painted ‘Seamarks’, that show the flicker and energy across the surface of the sea – a contemporary maritime artwork that anchors the water fountain WELL 2019 within the visitor entrance and waiting area, linking to the history of the Old Admiralty Building. Opened in 1907, it was the largest of a complex of buildings previously used by the government department that oversaw the Royal Navy.

As the artists explains:

'Old Admiralty is a historic building tattooed with narratives and applied imagery that references our maritime culture and our collective relationship with the sea.

At this time in our collective history our island status is more important than ever in how we see ourselves. SEAMARK brings the sea into the building as you arrive: a new contemporary maritime tattoo for the Old Admiralty Building'.

Born in London in 1966, Tania Kovats is an award winning artist. She exhibits internationally, publishes regularly, and her work is held in several major collections. Recent solo exhibitions include 'Oceanic' at Parafin, London (2021); 'Head to Mouth' at The Gymnasium Gallery, Berwick (2019); and 'Evaporation' at the Museum of Science & Industry, Manchester (2016). Her work is presented in many major collections and as significant permanent public commissions, including 'The Space of Reading' at the Bodleian Library in Oxford and 'TREE' at the Natural History Museum in London. Her work, 'GRAIN', is permanently installed at County Hall in Trowbridge. Kovats is currently Professor of Teaching and Research at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design; and Professor of Drawing at Bath Spa University.

Places

Subjects

Materials & Techniques

ceramic, installation

Artist

Tania Kovats (1966 - )

Title

SEAMARK (for Old Admiralty Building)

Date

2022

Medium

232 ceramic tiles in cobalt glaze

Dimensions

height: 348 cm; width: 226 cm

Acquisition

Commissioned by the Government Art Collection for Old Admiralty Building, funded by the Government Property Agency, May 2022

GAC number

19099