In conjunction with his solo show Passing Through, Rackowe is presenting a large-scale temporary public sculpture, entitled Folly, located beside the Thames on Millbank. The notion of passing through relates strongly to this work, as Rackowe’s shed series of sculptures were originally conceived on regular trips along the North London Line. The elevated views from the train, into the back gardens of dozens of London terraced houses, afforded glimpses of sheds and outbuildings, the kind of in-between, and anti-architecture that Rackowe sees as the glue that holds a city together.

The title of the work refers to architectural structures known as Follies, which were 18th century non or semi functional “buildings” constructed solely to be viewed from another building or vantage point and enhance the aesthetics of the vista. Rackowe grew up
near a well-known folly in the grounds of Wimpole Hall, outside Cambridge, and spent countless hours day-dreaming there as a child. This artwork occupies the same liminal space, hovering between the familiar and the unknown, stripped as it is of its associated function; this is more than a shed turned on its head.