Dreaming of Olympia - 5 Thomas Ostenberg bronzes at the Mint Leaf

It’s refreshing to see work that doesn’t strain for effect, is straightforward, confident and comfortable in its own skin. Ostenberg’s bronzes on show at the Mint Leaf restaurant  (Lothbury, City of London) are about joy, energy and love of life. There is humour in these pieces, and a kind of circus-like exuberance.

Two of the pieces - “Wing and a Prayer” and “Leap of Faith” - depict flying gymnastic figures suspended in a circle of bronze. What came to mind was a Classical Indian, rather than a Greek or Olympian association: the Mahabharata… “The wheel of life moves on. It has the understanding for its strength; the mind for the pole (on which it rests); the group of senses for its bonds, the five great elements for its nave, and home for its circumference”.

Perhaps ’the wheel of life’ explains why these works sit so beautifully in the surroundings of the Mint Leaf, an upmarket, funky Indian restaurant. The Ostenberg bronzes enhance the restaurant no end, and if the proprietors have any sense, they will make sure they hold on to them permanently. 

The exhibition is brought to the Mint Leaf by Fraser Kee Scott and A GALLERY, where you can find out more about the exhibition and Ostenberg’s pieces.