James Capper presented MONITOR at the Royal Academy of Arts
In autumn 2024, James Capper presented his new solo display MONITOR at the Royal Academy of Arts, showcasing the prototype for a major new sculpture project alongside recent artist drawings and a specially commissioned short documentary film. Held in the Architecture Window of The Ronald and Rita McAulay Gallery, MONITOR was commissioned by the Ukrainian arts foundation in exile, IZOLYATSIA, and is designed to serve as a nomadic studio for visiting artists in Kyiv. The project is a collaboration between Capper, designer Thomas Pearce, and architect Greg Storrar, continuing Capper's exploration of creating operational sculptures.
The centerpiece of the exhibition was an eight-metre-long mobile sculpture with four hydraulic legs, inspired by reptilian movement, capable of navigating difficult terrains such as water and ice. A full-scale prototype of the structure’s wall, created using advanced robotic technology, was on display, demonstrating how the mobile studio could be used by artists to conduct expeditions and creative work in challenging environments.
The idea for MONITOR originated during Capper’s residency with IZOLYATSIA in Kyiv in 2018. Initially intended to explore the terrains surrounding the Dnieper River and Kyiv’s industrial areas, the project evolved after the Russian invasion in 2022 to reflect the need for mobile, resilient creative spaces. The design incorporates Capper's interest in human-machine interaction and biomimicry. The prototype’s walls feature integrated tools and furniture, making the structure a multifunctional space for artists.
IZOLYATSIA and the MONITOR team are working to develop the project further, aiming to offer satellite studios to support the creative rebuilding of communities in Ukraine. The exhibition coincided with the Royal Academy’s display, In the Eye of the Storm: Modernism in Ukraine, 1900–1930s, which ran until 13 October 2024. Admission to MONITOR is free, with no booking required.
For more details please visit the Royal Academy of Arts website.
About MONITOR
MONITOR is a project by James Capper, Thomas Pearce, and Greg Storrar. The research into robotic incremental forming is led by Thomas Pearce at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL, assisted by Gary Edwards, Theo Tan, and Cristina Garza. The project has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the Higher Education Innovation Fund, IZOLYATSIA Foundation, The Bartlett Architectural Project Fund, B-made at UCL, Hannah Barry Gallery, and Sysco Productions.
About the Architecture Window at the Royal Academy of Arts
The Architecture Window in the Ronald and Rita McAulay Gallery is a space for new voices in architecture at the heart of the Royal Academy of Arts. The Architecture Window hosts a series of free "micro-exhibitions," each in place for three to four months. The Architecture Window was designed by the London-based creative studio Unknown Works. It takes the form of a large-scale, adaptable structure, with interchangeable shelves and external shutters that can be reconfigured to display 2D works, 3D models, and films for each micro-exhibition.
About James Capper
James Capper (b. 1987, London) lives and works in London. Capper's ambitious and innovative sculptural practice has been internationally recognized, with commissions and exhibitions at leading institutions, museums, and non-profit organizations around the world. These have included MONITOR at the Royal Academy of Arts, London (2024); CAMELLIA, a permanent public sculpture commissioned by Gallery Town, Rotherham (2022); PROTOTYPES OF SPECULATIVE ENGINEERING at MONA - Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmania (2022); MUDSKIPPER, a major public sculpture project co-commissioned by Battersea Power Station, Nine Elms on the South Bank, and The Royal Docks, London (2021); AREOCAB at 3-D Foundation, Verbier (2019); TREADPADS at Frieze Sculpture Park, London (2019); MARK MAKER at Bathurst Art Gallery, New South Wales (2017); MOUNTAINEER PROTOTYPE at Collins Public Sculpture Park, Miami (2015); RIPPER at CASS Sculpture Foundation, Chichester (2015); DIVISIONS at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield (2013); and Ripper Teeth in Action, commissioned by Modern Art Oxford (2011).
Capper holds a Master’s in Sculpture from the Royal College of Art, London (2010), and a Bachelor’s in Fine Art from Chelsea School of Art and Design (2008). In 2009, Capper was awarded the prestigious Jack Goldhill Prize for Sculpture from the Royal Academy of Arts, becoming the prize's youngest recipient, and was nominated for the Jerwood Sculpture Prize. In 2015, he was nominated for the Paul Hamlyn Visual Arts Award. He completed residencies at Wassaic Artist Residency, New York (2016); Casa Wabi Artist Residency, Oaxaca, and Bathurst Art Gallery, New South Wales (2017); and IZOLYATSIA Foundation, Kyiv (2018). In 2023, Capper was the only artist featured in an exhibition on globally leading engineers at the Science Museum, London, where his work is part of the permanent collection.
About Thomas Pearce
Dr. Thomas Pearce is Junior Professor for Emerging Technologies and Design at Bauhaus University in Weimar, Germany. Previously, he was a Lecturer at the Bartlett School of Architecture (2014-2019), where he also coordinated the Design for Manufacture M.A.rch. program, and at the Architectural Association in London (2013-2017). He has been a guest critic at institutions such as the University of Greenwich, Syracuse University, the University of California San Diego, UdK Berlin, and the University of Toronto. Thomas holds a B.A. and M.A. (KU Leuven, Belgium) in Cultural History and a B.Sc. (TU Berlin, Germany), an M.Arch., and a PhD (Bartlett, University College London, EPSRC-funded) in Architectural Design.
About Greg Storrar
Greg Storrar is a London-based architect who engages in cultural projects with complex sites, briefs, and museological ambitions. Working across and between the disciplines of architecture, exhibition design, research, and curation, his projects include the new London Museum at West Smithfield and Liverpool’s Canning Dock for the International Slavery and Maritime Museums. Greg received the Stephen Lawrence Prize (2018), awarded to the UK’s best building design led by an early-career Project Architect, and was named a "Rising Star" by the Architects' Journal (2019). Alongside his practice, Greg has held various academic appointments, including as a Lecturer at the Bartlett School of Architecture, where he taught as an undergraduate unit tutor (UG8, 2017-2023). He holds a B.A. in Architecture from the University of Cambridge, a Master’s in Architecture from University College London, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Architectural Professional Practice from the University of Westminster.
About IZOLYATSIA Foundation
IZOLYATSIA is a non-profit, non-governmental platform for cultural initiatives founded in 2010 on the site of a former insulation factory in Donetsk. The foundation takes its name from the original manufacturer. In June 2014, the territory was seized by armed representatives of the Russian Federation and turned into a Russian prison. The foundation was forced to relocate to Kyiv, where it continued its artistic program until the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, IZOLYATSIA has focused on providing humanitarian assistance to Ukrainians affected by the invasion. To this day, IZOLYATSIA remains committed to the Donbas region.
IZOLYATSIA aims to bring about systemic change in Ukrainian society through cultural projects. The foundation is developing an institutional environment that promotes networking among cultural agents and creates the necessary conditions for the emergence of new players. IZOLYATSIA focuses on the new Ukrainian generation involved in the creative and cultural sectors, serving as a platform for research, discussion, and the presentation of socio-political issues on local and global scales. IZOLYATSIA realizes projects at the intersection of contemporary art and civil society, working in areas such as research, site-specific projects, exhibitions, and residencies.