Clifford Chance

Saroj Patel receives the Clifford Chance/University of the Arts London (UAL) Sculpture Award 2020

The Clifford Chance/University of the Arts London Sculpture Award 2020 has been presented to Saroj Patel who completed her MA Fine Art studies at Central Saint Martins, UAL in 2019.

The £4,600 award was open to all post-graduate students at the UAL's constituent colleges and offers the selected artist the opportunity to display their sculpture in the Reception of Clifford Chance's offices at Canary Wharf for six months. The Award is presented to the proposal that best responds to Clifford Chance's London office. Postponed due to the pandemic, Saroj Patel's sculpture installation Observational Realities is now installed in our Client Reception.

Saroj Patel is a British Indian artist creating sculptures and installations that reimagine worlds of unidentified organisms, inviting viewers to engage in non-human narratives that evoke imaginative and sensory experiences, and generate possibilities in which new relations, ideas and connections can emerge. At Clifford Chance, two site specific 'soft' sculptures inhabit the space. Fabricated from Indian block printed fabrics, old clothes, glass beads and Indian temple bells, the sculptures explore themes of colour, space and interaction.

Mark Payne, Chair of the Clifford Chance art committee, said: 'The Committee was unanimous in selecting Saroj's proposal for our Client Reception. Her sculptures transform bright, colourful fabrics to create structures that are both inspiring to look at but also communicate more profound messages about personal history, mythology and ritual. As people return to our offices, these sculptures form a gateway back – fun but also uplifting. Saroj's sculptures are perfect for the current situation.'

The winning artist Saroj Patel said: 'The Clifford Chance Sculpture Award has given me the opportunity to develop as an artist in ways that would not have been possible otherwise. The chance to work in a space like this allows for new ways of thinking about how my work inhabits the world and interacts with its environment. In a time when we have all had to deal with an uncertain world and I have been adjusting to my new experience of motherhood, the Clifford Chance Award has been a wonderful point of focus for me and my practice throughout.'

Through our annual Sculpture Award, now in its 16th year, Clifford Chance are delighted to demonstrate our ongoing support for the creative artists completing their studies at the UAL’s constituent art colleges.