Elemental

It's hard to surpass nature. But Danish artist Olafur Eliasson doesn't try. Instead he emulates and plays with its awesome effects, from creating the sun inside London's Tate Modern (The Weather Project, 2003) to waterfalls under the Brooklyn Bridge (The New York City Waterfalls, 2008) and, perhaps most famously, making whole rivers run a deep green colour (Green River, 1998-2001). Breathtakingly diverse, magical and immersive, Eliasson makes artworks of the simplest elements of the world around us. The first survey show of his career opens at MCA Sydney this month.