Upcoming exhibitions

Michael Kennedy

2nd - 20th March 2010

Opening: Tues 2nd March, 5.30 – 7pm

In Michael Kennedy’s exhibition Rise of the Turnips, light hearted satire of contemporary culture and its increasing co-dependence on technology is characterised in the form of cute and curious illustrations.

 Influenced by American Pop-surrealism, the artist presents us with cuddly and innocent archetypes, often framed within the format of a portrait. These creatures appear friendly, like easy company, but with their insomniac eyes and bewildered expressions, almost seem to be victims of their own plight. The depiction of fictional characters - much like those seen in the superabundance of children’s television programmes- as vegetables extends the well known phrase ‘couch-potato’ to an overwhelming reality. Transgressive metaphors refer to a blurred sense of identity, in which it becomes difficult to distinguish one’s own reality from its representations.

Kennedy’s move toward more painterly surface qualities empowers his response to the language of the media. The luscious paint announces the presence of the artist who applied it in order to communicate the images. Reminding us that what we see is the product of a free imagination, and that we too are not mere passive observers of the media, but living beings who can respond with originality, creativity, and therefore celebration.

David Blackburn

David Blackburn |This is not a Rehearsal

23rd March - 10th April 2010

Opening: Tues 23rd March, 5.30 – 7pm

David’s work focuses on the body as a material and poetic means to explore the human condition. Assembled and constructed objects are striking as metaphors for the body.

Each work is encapsulated in an object that serves as a vessel to be inhabited and vacated. Questions about how to distinguish between the flesh and the psyche are raised, as the relationships between objects and materials vary, and suggested reconciliations are played out.

Reference is drawn to Vanitas painting; there is a delicately macabre sense of fragility to the works. However, the impressions of decay are challenged by a sense of nurture and compassion as well as the preciousness with which each form is preserved. Constructed and reconstructed examples of human intervention also pervade throughout the works, and an emphasis on sensuality invites one to contemplate with empathy before intellect.

David graduated from Elam School of Fine Arts with a BFA in 1992. His recent work has increasingly focused on research and experimentation around ways to reinvent the human form.