Elemental art. The magnetism of the profound.
Based Upon creates physical manifestations of the unsaid. Its process is the excavation of origin and lore; it faces the sacred, invites the personal. In pursuing the intersection of the gestural and the finely crafted, the transient and the timeless, it celebrates the meditative in the mundane and the poetic possibility of the liminal. With a reverence for truth, as it exists in the personal and collective realms, stories are given form, essence is distilled into matter. The art becomes an offering.
Conceived in London in 2004 as an interdisciplinary creative practice, Based Upon transcends traditional categorisation. Its founders, twin brothers Ian & Richard Abell, their father Maurice and Alex Welch celebrate making work as a band rather than as a solo artist and have been joined by a number of visionary artists and designers over 21 years. Working across medium and creative category, philosophy and materiality shape a practice dedicated to exploring true value and translating essence into form.
Over the past two decades, Based Upon has produced a global body of monumental sculptures and commissioned legacy artworks, each imbued with meaning and stories of myth, memory and matter. The self-represented artist has been invited to exhibit alongside leading galleries at major international art fairs, shown at solo and group exhibitions worldwide, and counts among its clients some of the world’s most influential figures and notable collectors. Commemorative works, created by Based Upon for landmark moments, are also held by revered institutions across the globe.