Southern Guild commissioned Gregor Jenkin to design an installation for BMW to mark the upcoming 50th anniversary of BMW Motorsport. This large-scale metal structure went on display with a BMW M5 Competition inside the gallery, to coincide with the M Town City Drop in the Silo District of the V&A Waterfront.

Jenkin’s design brings together his interests in space making and architectural form with his passion for the brand. Drawing on his deep knowledge of the 5 Series and its evolution over the decades, the installation frames his nuanced interpretation of BMW Motorsport with particular cues from the M5.

But to describe this as a structure is only one half of the story, as Jenkin is equally concerned with what he calls “the gaps” – the spaces that exist between and around the components, which help define their form. Referring to bricklaying, for example, it is the precision and straightness of the mortar between the bricks, rather than the bricks themselves, that gives the system its beauty.

Jenkin has thought through every detail of the sculpture, taking into consideration its dynamic nature as people move around it and light and shadow play across its forms.

Jenkin began his career making production furniture by applying engineering processes and materials to interpret heritage forms. Driven by the process of making, he developed a crisp and pared down language informed by his vernacular. Through his perceived beauty of incidental form, he recognised aspects of utilitarian architecture within our landscape and strove to express this appreciation through the forum of furniture.

Jenkin continues to make both production and unique pieces, many of which have been widely exhibited by Southern Guild. He was the first African designer to feature at Design Miami and has works in the permanent collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Modern Art. Presenting form has now extended beyond the limitations of function into sculpture.