FORM Journal is looking forward to the release of its second issue, “Matter”. Edited by Sven Christian, it includes twenty-one contributions that explore the ins-and-outs of matter in sculptural practice, from more permanent substances like bronze, rock, and steel to the ecologically-orientated and ephemeral.

What are the implications of using particular materials? How do they resonate, cognitively and physically? What associations do materials accrue with time and use, and what scope is there for artists to change how they are received and appreciated?

Similarly, how do we understand the role of weathering and decay, exposure to the elements, or the subjection of materials like wood and clay to fire, water, or air – not just as a means to impose our will on them, but as collaborators in the making process? What kind of memories do materials hold? What is the relationship between the body — as matter — and the labour involved, or the way that materials implicate themselves on the body of the maker?