One could speculate that the only reason this paint is public knowledge, is because it was sold to all sides. But I wouldn’t say that -- out loud.

See, the title of “the world’s blackest black” was not enough force it into the social zeitgeist. That changed in March of 2016 when the world became aware that Kapoor had purchased exclusivity rights to use it. Well, sort of. he monopolized the artistic use of Vantablack S-VIS, a sprayable version of Vantablack. This is an important distinction, as Surrey Nanosystems has developed, multiple versions of the CNT coating. And it meant the military and the telescopes were safe -- for now.

In hindsight, we can see what brought Kapoor to this purchase,“I’m absolutely sure that to make new art, you have to make new space. Malevich’s black square doesn’t just make a proposition about non-images or black as an image; it suggests that space works in a different way than previously conceived. Whether it is literal space or poetic space, I’m sure that this equation is correct.”

Kapoor is steadfast in his belief that new art requires new space -- and he found that in Vantablack. Kapoor has been working working with voids in his art since the 80’s, when along comes this material that amplifies his ability to accomplish that. He also realized that the best way to lock in the potential of this “new space” in a capitalistic society was to buy out any competitors. So he did.