London, UK. 17 February 2023. Time: 14:00

This February, Jitish Kallat presents Whorled (Here After Here After Here), a new courtyard commission by Somerset House and the Mumbai-based artist’s first major public commission in the UK. This striking outdoor installation, over 30 metres in diameter, comprises two intersecting spirals that echo the signage of UK roads and connect the famed courtyard of Somerset House to locations across the planet.

Whorled (Here After Here After Here) is conceived as a seismic ripple or a galactic whorl, aligned to the Earth’s cardinal north-south directions and spiralling outwards from the centre of the Somerset House courtyard. Two vast scrolls, each 168 metres in length, form interlocking spirals and a continuum of text and symbols follows the visual language of UK motorway signage. As visitors walk through the scrolls, these signs indicate the distance from Somerset House to over 300 locations across the planet and beyond, pointing to celestial bodies, such as the Moon, Mars, and distant stars in the Milky Way.